Red Kryptonite Contingency
by Embers and Dust
Summary: "So what you're saying," Robin said quietly, placing the chip on the table. "Is that we have to take down the Justice League." AU of Auld Acquaintances; when Batman and Robin are the only ones not infected with Star-o-tech.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: You recognize it, it's not mine.**

 **These author's notes are never going to be long, I'll let my story do the talking.**

* * *

Batman knew something was wrong as soon as Red Arrow walked up behind him.

Bruce had declined to join the rest of the Justice League for the induction party of its newest members, choosing to analyze the micro-chips that Young Justice had recently acquired in the computer labs in the lower section of the watchtower.

Bruce had to give the team credit,as they had performed exceptionally. They had worked around each other's weaknesses, covered each other when their plan was interrupted, and adapted and took control of the situation. Even the addition of a new member, Rocket, hadn't slowed them down too much. In less than a day, she had integrated into the team dynamic flawlessly. Some members of the League couldn't have accomplished that.

Placing the nano circuitry into one of the holo-sensors, Batman studied the magnified chip on the screen in front of him. There was nothing obvious he could determine by just looking at the chip, so he set the computer to run the normal tests. While it was scanning, Batman turned to the computer and began to cross reference any connections between this new technology and others that the League or the Team had previously encountered.

He was halfway through his search, when the door behind him slid open.

The distinct footsteps of Red Arrow walked closer.

Batman narrowed his eyes, but did not turn away from the terminal. Something was off.

Roy would never have left the party early, especially when it was a party for him. Roy would never say it, but he loved the attention. He had always wanted the praise that he thought he deserved, and the party was the perfect place for the Justice League's compliments to feed Roy's ego.

So why was he here?

He certainly wasn't going to get any compliments from Batman.

"So," Roy said, grinning cockily, "are you ever going to join the party?"

These words made Batman's suspicions grow. It was well known that he did not party. He was not a social person, nor did he ever try to be. The only time he ever was, he was 'Brucie Wayne' at a gala, or some other equally boring function. And anyone who acctually mattered knew he hated those too.

Roy's tone caught Batman's attention as well. He was cocky, as if he expected some kind of praise from the Dark Knight. That was dangerous. Red Arrow would have to be put in his place, if he didn't get his ego in check soon.

Red Arrow continued to walk closer to Bruce's work space, and with each step, what Clark had dubbed Bruce's 'Bat Paranoia' steadily increased.

"This Bio-circuity is disturbingly sophisticated." Batman responded, keeping one eye on the younger hero.

And it really was. From the brief time Batman had been studying it he had found circuits similar to the Amazo robot, fused to an organic creature, as well as low level mystic charge. It was a combination of technologies that surpassed anything the modern world had to offer. And it proved that a large scale organization of criminals existed, on that was much bigger than the Injustice League.

Turning to inform Red Arrow of his discovery, he saw the other pull something out of his utility belt.

Grinning, Roy looked up and reached towards him, "I'll take that as a no."

Seeing a flash of red in Roy's hand, Batman's instincts took over. Kicking his leg out, Batman struck the archer in the stomach. Red Arrow gasped and curled around himself, dropping whatever he was holding. Moving with his momentum, Batman spun and kicked out with his other leg, hitting Red Arrow in the head, and Roy dropped to the floor unconscious.

Landing on his feet, Batman inspected what Roy had dropped. It was an identical copy of the chip that he was studying.

Batman ran what had just happened through his head. With the way Roy's hand had been positioned, the chip was supposed to have been placed on his neck. A chill ran up Bruce's spine, but before he jumped to conclusions, he turned back to the computers. The data collected from the chip confirmed his suspicions.

He knew mind control when he saw it.

Grabbing the chip off the floor, and the one off the scanner, he moved all of his research into his holo-glove. While it was transferring, Batman crouched down next to the unconscious archer and examined the back of his neck. There were no visible marks on his neck, but that didn't mean something wasn't there.

Rising back to the computer, he pulled security footage from the league party upstairs. Rewinding the footage, he narrowed his eyes when he saw Roy wrap his arms around Dinah in a quick hug. Zooming in, Batman could see her falter for a moment. If anyone else noticed, they paid no mind, because it seemed like she was shocked by his open affections. Batman knew better. During the hug, Roy had snuck the chip on her neck.

Bruce knew that the two would have quickly infected everyone else. He was the last target.

Not wasting needing to see any more, he unplugged his glove and ran.

If the League was comprised, going through the Zeta-tubes was not an option. So Batman sprinted to the javelin hangars. The spacecrafts were always ready to deploy for a world catastrophe. Batman thought this qualified.

He jumped into the closest ship and used the emergency override to bypass standard protocols. The floor opened up beneath the spacecraft, and he shot out of the Watchtower.

Looking in the rear cameras, and seeing small figures pursuing him, Bruce knew he was far from safe.

As he angled the craft down towards the planet below him, he typed an order that he had hoped he would never have to give.

Pressing send, Batman turned his eyes back to the controls. There was no way he could save any of the Team in time. It was all up to Robin now, if he wasn't already too late.

* * *

He awoke to the sound of his alarm.

Blearily reaching out to his bedside table, Robin tried to smash his alarm clock back into silence.

 _"N_ ooooooo..." he mumbled dejectedly, only half awake.

Surprisingly, his hand only hit open air, and his momentum carried him off his bed and onto the floor in a heap of blankets. Jolting awake, the first few thoughts that went through Dick's head was something along the lines of ' _where the heck am i'_ and ' _five more minutes'._

Regaining his senses, he saw he was in his very unused room in Mount Justice. Slowly, he remembered the events of the other day.

After their mission, the entire team had been exhausted. And Robin had been too tired to make the commute back home. The rest of the team had probably followed his lead, and crashed at the mountain too.

Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Robin looked around and saw that it was his holo-glove that had woken him up. It was beeping at a volume that wouldn't have woken most people, but most people weren't him. He jumped out of bed and reached for the device. He turned the alarm off and looked at the time. Robin blinked, it was 1:17 in the morning.

"Seriously?" Robin muttered, realizing that the alarm was because his mentor had sent him a message, "Can't a guy get his beauty rest?" Chuckling quietly, he unlocked his glove and opened the message.

His humor quickly faded as he saw what it contained.

 **LEAGUE RED KRYPTONITE** **PROTOCOL.**

He read the message again, to make sure he wasn't misreading it. But no, it was still the same message.

This was bad.

Only he, Bruce and Alfred had access to these contingencies. There was no possibility that someone could have discovered their meanings, there were no computer files on it, no records. They had memorized the Red Kryptonite Protocols, so unless they were dealing with a mind reader- Robin cut off that train of thought. Anything was possible. Everything was up in the air.

Suddenly, he didn't feel so tired.

Of course, Clark knew what Red Kryptonite was, after his first encounter with it.

Robin remembered when that had happened. He had been Batman's partner for a few months, and Superman had been exposed to the rare rock while fighting his arch-nemesis, Lex Luthor. The strange variant of kryptonite turned Superman into a mind controlled puppet. The most powerful man in the world became the most powerful weapon, and for reasons that only made sense to psychopaths, Lex had ordered Superman to destroy Gotham's protector.

Batman had tired to fight Superman, but there was only so much he could do. The fight had eventually turned into the deadliest game of cat and mouse throughout Gotham. But while Batman stalled, Robin had looked for a way to free Superman. The search had led him to Lexcorp. He had found the cure, and was just about to leave, when he had stumbled upon Luthor himself. It had felt really good to punch him in the face.

Afterwards, when Superman had been cured of his brief mind control, Bruce had only given vague details of their fight, but warned Clark away from any color of kryptonite.

Once the alien had left the cave, Bruce had sat down and taken his adopted son into his lap. Then they talked. They both agreed that there had been too many close calls while trying to get Superman to snap out of it. It had taken them too long to take control of the situation, and it had nearly cost them their lives.

This single conversation planted the seeds for the Red Kryptonite Protocols. The Protocols were set in place so that if someone they trusted was being mind controlled, without access to the old memories or feelings of the host, they would be prepared.

Blinking, Robin looked at the first word of the message. This designated who was dangerous, and who they would have to fight. Robin gulped.

He knew that together, he and Batman could take down any single Member of the Justice League. They had trained for that. The entire League, at the same time, was a different story.

A sharp bang brought the Boy Wonder out of his thoughts.

Quickly jumping to his feet, Robin scrambled to put his gear on. While slipping one foot into his boot, and re-checking every compartment of his utility belt, he hacked into the mountains security cameras. It didn't take long to find his team.

M'gann, Zatanna, Rocket and Wally were in the main training room, their blank faces turned toward Black Canary and Red Tornado. Kaldur and Conner had just entered the room and were dragging a kicking and screaming Artemis toward the group. Her flailing legs had probably caused the loud noise he had just heard.

The Archer only fought harder as she was brought in front of of Black Canary. Robin watched helplessly as Tornado stepped forward and placed something on her neck. Artemis gasped and her eyes widened for half a second, until her face cleared and she stood up, mirroring her teammates.

Robin's eyes widened. Artemis, one of the most stubborn people he had ever met, besides his own mentor, had been turned into a mind controlled zombie.

Scanning the screen, Robin realized his entire team had joined her.

Robin was alone.

Then Black Canary said something that made his heart stop.

"Get Robin"

Swearing like a sailor, and mentally apologizing to Alfred because of it, Robin sprang into the ventilation shaft at the top his wall. Crawling as fast as he possibly could, he sent his own message back to Batman.

 **TEAM RED KRYPTONITE PROTOCOL.**

Now, if he didn't get out of the mountain in time, Batman would know exactly what they were up against.

Robin crawled through the vents and towards the garage. He scanned the area below him. Seeing that it was clear, he jumped down from the vents and ran to his R-cycle. Unfortunately it was parked on the far side of the vehicle bay, closest to the exit, and before he made it halfway there a yellow blur intercepted him.

Robin didn't stop sprinting, even as he threw small pellets at the ground near Wally's feet.

His usually expressive friend lifted one foot and crushed the marbles beneath him, thinking that they were supposed to trip him up. Instead, a pink foam spurted out from underneath his foot and wrapped around the speedster's body, leaving only his face exposed.

Without breaking stride, Robin leaped over his best friend. Placing a foot on Wally's foam covered shoulder, Robin used his momentum to fly through the air and land on his bike.

At his signal, the bay doors slowly opened in front of him. But before he could make his daring escape, Robin heard heavy footsteps to his right. He pressed his body flat to the bike as arrows flew above him. Robin spared a glance over his shoulder and saw his Team racing forward. Artemis was now aiming her arrows at his face, while Superboy, Zatanna, Aqualad and Rocket were sprinting directly for him. Ms. Martian was holding back and trying to free Kid Flash.

With a roar, Superboy leaped at the small boy, and grabbed his cape.

Choking, Robin reached for his neck, the cape automatically releasing and flying into Superboy's face. Turning back around, Robin floored it. He sped out the small opening of the bay doors, scraping the sides of his bike, and he used the emergency lock down procedure to close them once he was through. They slammed together much faster than they had opened.

Robin winced slightly when he heard a bang on the other side of the reinforced door.

"Note to self," Robin muttered, as he sped towards safety,"Mind control does not make Superboy less angry"

* * *

After leading Green Lantern and Martian Manhunter on a chase involving several double backs, multiple switched vehicles and even one exploding building, Batman was finally confident that he was not being followed. Bruce was now driving into Gotham in a 'borrowed' car. A long trench-coat covered his bat-suit, while his gloves and cowl were discarded next to him.

Turning down a decrepit alley, the disguised Batman stopped his car next to one of the brick apartments.

Across the road was a train station for one of the old town subways. It looked abandoned, trash littered it's entrance, and the stone pillars inside had been eroded away.

Most people had forgotten about the decommissioned railway when the newer and cleaner light rail had been constructed above it.

Bruce was not most people. He cautiously got out of his car and walked down into the abandoned station, scanning the rooftops for any sign of someone tailing him. He couldn't afford to be followed.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs, he turned to the pillars on the far side of the loading platform. His fingers tapped along one of the broken tiles on the side. One of the tiles cut into his finger, drawing a drop of blood. A few seconds later, the outline of a door appeared.

As it slid down and revealed a dark hallway, a female computerized voice said, "Recognized-" Bruce cut the computer off. "Override, BW_1047." The voice did not respond, But Batman could hear the multiple traps in the hallway being disabled. Bruce stepped into the doorway, and it slid shut behind him. A few meters past the entrance, and the lights suddenly illuminated the elevator in front of him. He stepped inside, and he could feel it going down for a few moments before the doors opened again.

In front of him was a literal fortress.

Weapons of various sizes and deadliness were stored in racks along the wall to his right, anything from nun-chucks to sabers to lasers were displayed. Bruce knew that if he went far enough back, he would even find multiple guns, not that he would ever use them. On the other side of the room, a large computer monitor was starting up. The computer was almost an exact replica of the Bat-computer, and as soon as it was on the two supercomputers would sync each other's data. A circular training platform took up the center of the room, while further back, multiple types of vehicles were displayed. Near the vehicles, one medium sized tunnel led away from the bunker, and an unhooked Zeta-transporter lay dormant next to it.

This was the base that was even more secret than the Batcave, and Robin had jokingly called it the Bat-Bunker.

Unsurprisingly the name had stuck.

Bruce's eyes immediately locked onto the figure standing in the training arena. The tension in his shoulders loosened when he saw that it was his ever-faithful butler that stood waiting for him.

"Ah, Master Bruce I am glad to see that you are unharmed."

"I'm glad you got my message Alfred," Bruce greeted, "Has Dick shown up?" he asked.

"I am afraid he has not," Alfred confessed. Sensing his charge's silent distress, he offered some comfort, "However, it is quite a long ride from Happy Harbor to Gotham. I am sure the young Master is quite alright."

Nodding, Bruce turned into Batman once again. Taking off the trench coat covering his uniform, he walked over to the large computer and restarted the research that Red Arrow had interrupted. There might have been something that he had missed that could give him an advantage over the mysterious mind controlling chip.

As he was working, Alfred took stock on all of their available supplies.

They worked in quiet harmony for a good part of an hour.

Their silence was interrupted when the sound of a engine down the small tunnel alerted the two to the fact that they were no longer alone. A small red and black motorcycle sped into the bunker, and its rider sprung out of the seat before it had fully stopped. Before Batman knew what had hit him, a small boy was hugging him tightly around the middle.

"Bruce!" Dick yelled, excitement written all over his features, "You're alright!"

Smiling, Bruce hugged back, "I'm glad you're safe, Dick"

A small cough broke them apart. Smiling at his two charges Alfred began,"As much as I am glad that the two of you are unharmed, what exactly are we safe from?"

Growing serious Bruce moved to the computer.

"What were dealing with is one of our worst case scenarios." He gestured to the small chip being scanned "The technology that the Team had confiscated the other day has been used against the League. I am now certain that this chip, once placed on someone's neck, will offer complete control over that person's body." Alfred gasped. Glaring at the small chip, Batman continued, "Now each person of the League-"

"and Team" Robin interrupted, coming to his mentor's side to study the chip.

"-and the Team," He amended "have been infected with it. Giving complete control of the most powerful beings on earth to an unknown adversary."

"Dear Lord!" Alfred exclaimed, "Everyone is infected?"

"Until we know better, then yes, we assume that everyone associated with the League is infected" He stated solemnly.

"So what you're saying, " Robin said quietly, placing the chip on the table. "Is that we have to take down the Justice League."

* * *

Gotham city was uncharacteristically quiet. No major Villains cackled in the alleyways, nor were there any normal people walking through the streets. It was far too early for anyone to think of getting out of bed. The smog that constantly surrounded the city lay undisturbed in the morning. However, the silent streets did not mean that there was no one in the shadows.

Two figures leaped through the darkness, the rooftops their highway in the mist. The duo were silent wraiths in the night, leaving no indication that they were there. Even if someone on the ground looked directly at them, they would only see blurs racing by.

Finally, the two stopped and crouched on a building. The smaller one switched on his holo-glove, while the larger stared down through the skylight. Through it, unsuspecting scientists could be seen working, not caring about the late hour, and unaware they were being watched. Batman turned to his young protege, and with unspoken communication, they began.

* * *

 **1 hour ago**

After Dick's morbidly accurate observation, Batman, Robin and Alfred had swapped stories.

Batman quickly told them how he had caught Red Arrow trying to place the chip on him, and his quick escape from the watchtower. Robin had been shocked at Red Arrow's betrayal. To think that one of his oldest friends had been the mole was heartbreaking, and Dick quietly hoped that Roy had been under the chip's control the entire time.

Robin then explained how he had escaped Mount Justice, and Batman was impressed by how quickly Robin had avoided his entire team. The skill that he had demonstrated by avoiding his superpowered friends showed just how capable his partner had become. While his mask was on, Robin could easily push past his emotions to complete the mission. Dick, however, could not. As soon as he pulled off his mask, his emotions poured out.

"Bruce... I was _right there._ My friends were in danger, and I just ran. How can I be a hero if I didn't even _try_. If I tried I might've saved Artemis and-"

Bruce cut off his son's ramblings and put his large hands on his shoulders, "Dick, there was nothing you could have done," He grimaced, "And if you had tried to save Artemis, you might have gotten infected as well."

"Yeah...I guess so," He mumbled and looked down. Soon, Robin's trademark smirk was back on his face, and he faced his father. "And we can't have have you facing the most powerful group on earth all alone, now can we _old man_?" And he jokingly hit Batman on the shoulder.

Bruce scoffed and playfully pushed Dick away. Rolling with the push, Dick dramatically fell backwards and flipped back onto his feet. Bruce smiled, glad his son hadn't been too daunted by the task ahead of them. "Lets get to work." he said, turning back into Batman.

Remarkably soon, under the circumstances, they had a plan. Alfred left for Wayne Enterprises to pick up some necessary equipment. People would not question the butler's presence in the tower so early in the morning, and he would be able to meet with another trusted friend, Lucius Fox. There they would be able to prep the different equipment designed to incapacitate different members of the Justice League. Both men would continue to work from the tower until Batman or Robin returned.

As Alfred left for his own mission, Batman and Robin had agreed that they needed a professional to study of the hostile chip. They needed to know exactly what they were dealing with to understand and counteract its effects. After another quick discussion, they had departed, leaving an empty bunker behind them.

* * *

 **Present time**

 _I can't understand why any of these scientists would ever want to take the 4:00 am shift, but I'm glad they did._ Thought Robin, as he stared down from the roof. _The small workforce at Star Labs makes our jobs so much easier._ Looking through the skylight, he smirked when he saw a change in the shadows in the corners of the room below him. _There's my cue._ _I think I'm going_ _to have a little fun._

Robin saw his chance to slip in when the two scientists below rose to greet another man. Said man was returning to the room from a coffee break. The two walked over to the door, where the new arrival held their coffee. Using the extra noise to his advantage, Robin jumped down from his viewpoint in the rafters and slid into one of the seats that the scientists had just left. Waiting for them to notice him, he spun around in the chair.

Finally, the other man left the room. When the scientists turned around, the last thing they had expected to see was the Boy Wonder, spinning around in their chairs and giggling. Noticing the stunned silence, Robin smoothly stopped the chair so he was facing them. _Oh this is too good._ Robin thought. _They look like they've seen a ghost celebrity and they can't decide whether to ask for an autograph or run away._

Deciding to mess with their minds a bit more, Robin met their gobsmacked gaze,"Evening, gentlemen." He said in his best foreign accent. Hardly waiting for their reply, Robin turned back to the computers in front of him. "Your building _does_ have the best equipment for studying bio and nano circuitry in Gotham right?"

The coffee in the men's hands spilled to the floor. "How...W-What?" Stuttered one man. _I'm going to call you Dr. Twitch_ thought Robin, noticing how the man's hands had started to shake.

"We need to study some Nanotech, using your facility would be a great help." Robin interrupted, his eyes never leaving the screen.

"H-help... you?" The Dr. Twitch exclaimed.

"We?" Said the other. _Ah_ Robin mused. _You must be Mr. Smarty Pants._

"Yep." Robin replied, eyes never leaving the monitors.

"Robin." Barked a sharp voice. Both men jumped and spun around, coming face to face with THE Batman. "We cannot waste time," He strode to his partners side, not noticing or caring that them men in front of him looked like they were going to faint,"I've triggered the alarms of other research centers, but it will not distract the League for long. We have only a few hours until they locate us." Turning to the two men, he growled,"We need of your facilities. Contact your top scientists and get out _."_

The men wasted no time, and began fumbling with their phones to contact their superiors. _I should have named them Dr. Stutter and Wet Pants with the way their acting._ Robin thought.

Once they had made their respective phone calls, the scientists rushed out of the room, barely stopping themselves from squealing in fright. As soon as they left, the real work started. Batman put one of the chips into the high-powered micro scanner, searching for anything his scans had not already picked up.

Robin stood up from his chair and took a small device out of his belt. He then moved to an open area of the floor. He placed a circular disk the size of his hand in front of him and pressed the top of it. The disk began to hum quietly, and Robin took quick steps away from it. He then pressed a button on his glove. Three legs shot out of the bottom of the disk, and it shot into the air, creating a large pyramid with the disk at the top. Robin stepped underneath it. A blue light scanned him, then a robotic voice spoke.

"Authorized, Robin B01. State desired location."

"Atlantis. Facility 2A." Robin stated.

"Connecting. Please wait." said the robotic voice.

Robin stepped back and glanced at his mentor. "Lets hope they get the message."

They didn't have to wait long, as the voice suddenly said, "Connected. Queen Mera G04"

The hollow pyramid hummed again, and suddenly a life-sized holographic projection sprung to action on the floor.

The hologram showed an underwater lab, with 4 people floating in it. Robin recognized the one in the center as Queen Mera, wife to King Orin. He had never met her in person, but she was Royalty, and he quickly remembered to give her the proper respect.

"Your Majesty," Robin bowed, placing his right fist over his heart in the Atlantian salute Kaldur had taught him."You received our message."

"Yes Robin," Mera stated, her eyes weary. She gestured to a small package the man beside her was holding. "as well as your package."

Robin smiled. He and Batman had gambled, and it had payed off. By modifying their teleporter in the Bunker, they had been able to teleport a small object anywhere in the world, without another Zeta-Tube to receive it. With only enough power in the bunker for one trip, they had sent the second chip to Atlantis, along with a message. They had hoped that the Atlanteans would have access to information and technology that people on the surface did not.

Turning away from the queen, Robin studied the three people behind her. The older man on her right he could only assume to be one of Atlantis's scientists, and the two people on her left he recognized as Kaldur friends, Tula and Garth.

"Is Batman there?" Mera asked.

"I'm here Your Majesty," Batman greeted, walking out from behind the table "Has your side made any progress?"

"Indeed we have," Said the older man," In fact we've identifi-" as the scientist continued to talk, Robin noticed Batman subtly signaling him to patrol the outside of the building. Taking this as his cue to leave, Robin made his way to the door. _I know it makes sense to have someone on_ lookout, Robin internally mumbled, _but I was looking forward to studying the chips._ Before he could reach the door, he was stopped by the projection Tula walking in front of him. _Technically I could still walk through her,_ Robin pondered, _She isn't actually in front of me._

"Robin," She pleaded,"Do you know how our comrade, Kaldur, fares?"

He sighed and shrugged, "Honestly Tula, I have no idea, I was too busy running for my life to really pay attention."

Tula slumped with grief, and Garth swam over and put an arm around her to comfort her. "You will notify us if anything changes, yes?" Garth asked.

Robin nodded to the pair, "Of course I will, stay whelmed." Ignoring their confused looks, he walked through her hologram. Once outside, he sighed. _I know I shouldn't be mad at Garth, but from what Kaldur has said, he broke a major rule of the bro-code. Dating the girl that your best friend is madly in love with is a big no-no. It would be like me dating Artemis. Wally would never forgive me._ Laughing quietly at his two oblivious friends, he moved to the exit.

Near the front entrance, he saw two new frazzled scientists walking in. They looked like they had just woken up, rolled into their lab coats, and left for work. Hiding his amusement, he pointed the dazed scientists towards the main laboratory. Robin then went outside and grappled up to the roof. Pulling out his binoculars he crouched down and waited.

* * *

The sun had nearly risen when Robin spotted the motorcycles. Using his binoculars, He confirmed exactly who was speeding down the highway towards them. Cursing, he contacted Batman. _We don't have enough time,_ _it's only been 30 minutes since Batman radioed in. We're close to making a prototype antidote and vaccine, but how close?_ Robin raised his hand to the comm in his ear.

"We've got company" he stated.

Quickly Batman replied, "Who?"

"If I'm not mistaken, Black Canary, and all the Arrows." Robin informed. "It seems like whoever is controlling the League is grouping the people with the most experience together." _It makes sense,_ he added silently, even _if their mind-controlled, there's some familiarity to fighting alongside your partners. They're less likely to fight the mind control if they're around family._

"ETA?"

"Ten minutes, tops"

Batman was silent as he contemplated their next move. _We_ _could try to move the scientists, and start somewhere else. But that would take time that we cannot afford. Our only real option is to fight them, and buy the scientists the time they need._

A few more tense minutes passed in silence before Robin interrupted it again.

"ETA five minutes, Batman should we engage?"

Resigning himself to the mission, Batman told the scientists to pick up the pace, and swept out of the room. When he reached the main lobby, Robin leapt down from the rafters and stood next to the Bat. Both stayed that way, side by side, waiting for the inevitable.

* * *

 **Reviews are appreciated!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Sorry for any of the confusion with the missing chapters. I honestly forgot about this story, and it's currently under construction. Either way, here's the story so far.**

* * *

 _I had to give them_ credit, Robin mused, _The arrows know how to make an entrance._

As soon as the four motorcycles had pulled up to the curb, Batman and Robin had slipped into the shadows. With one sharp cry from Black Canary, all of the windows in the lobby had shattered, and before the broken glass had settled on the ground, Red Arrow had dropped in from broken skylight. The two blonde archers flipped through side windows while Black Canary simply sauntered through the broken front door. The four mind controlled heroes met in the center of the room.

Each of the archers had their bows drawn, and pointed to different sections of the room, and Canary took point. Robin was slightly disturbed by their lack of emotion. Ollie wasn't cracking stupid puns and punchlines, and Roy didn't have his signature scowl as a reaction to said puns. _This just felt wrong. Ollie and Roy working together, and not bantering? not even arguing? I don't care if Roy quit, this wouldn't have changed. Them not talking while taking down bad guys is the same as Batman playing poker with the Joker, It doesn't happen._

Sweeping the room with her eyes, Black Canary began to speak. "Batman. Robin. We know you are here." She sounded out each word, like she was struggling to say them.

A young voice responded with a cackle. "Sure, that's why guys have other Leaguers checking different laboratories."

Black canary stepped out of the circle and into open space "How did-"

"We know that?" The voice interrupted, this time from the other side of the room, and Black Canary spun around.

"You underestimated us." A new, deeper voice answered.

The Arrows twirled around when they realized that the voice came from the center of their circle. Each of them had been facing opposite directions, and in theory it prevented anyone from sneaking up behind them. However, they had failed to account for someone sneaking down from the ceiling, like what Batman had done. By using the noise from Robin's conversation to mask his approach, they hadn't realized it until it was far too late.

In one brutal and coordinated strike, Batman put Black Canary in a tight choke hold, while Robin flipped down from the rafters and onto Green Arrow's shoulders. Dropping knockout gas pellets in between Green Arrow and Artemis, Robin used his momentum to roll along the ground and sweep Red Arrow's feet out from under him.

Ollie fell to the ground coughing, while Roy had the wind knocked out of him. Artemis stumbled away from the gas before it incapacitated her. Spinning back onto his feet, Robin noticed that although Canary had managed to get out of the hold, Batman had temporary disabled her scream. They had begun to fight hand to hand, and even under mind control she was an amazing fighter, but she was no match for the Bat.

He sensed a shift in the air behind him, so Robin sprung to one side, narrowly dodging an arrow. Spinning around, he saw that Artemis was aiming the pointly, deadly kind of arrows at his head.

 _So their aiming to kill us?_ He thought. _That doesn't seem right, why wouldn't they want to control us?_ Multiple arrows followed after the first, and one managed to graze his arm as he flipped away. Artemis was shooting at him as fast as humanly possible.

Flipping and sliding, Robin soon realized that they were at a stalemate, he couldn't get close to her, and she couldn't hit him. He continued to dodge as he tried to gain the advantage, until Red Arrow stood up. Now Robin had to work twice as hard to not get shot. When a scarlet arrow came too close to his face for comfort, he twirled around to face the two. _Ok. That was too close,_ He thought. I _have to stop this._

Positioning himself so that Roy blocked Artemis's view, he shot his grappling gun at his bow.

 _Step one, threaten to take away weapon of choice._ Roy easily rolled out of the way of his grapple, but Artemis had no time to react before her own bow was tangled in the line. Robin grinned.

 _Step two, make them panic and forget their surroundings._ Robin pressed the rewind button on his grapple and shot forward. Artemis had not been willing to give up her bow and her tight grip made her stumble forward.

 _Step three, make them lose control._ Letting go of his hook, he flipped forward and slammed both feet into her head. Artemis crumped to the ground in an instant. _Sorry_ _Artemis, I hate step four, but it had to be done. I don't envy the headache you're gonna wake up to._

Robin was standing over his friend when an exploding arrow landed by his feet, and sent him flying into a nearby pillar.

 _I can't win if Roy had his bow_. Roy was reloading and had the arrow halfway drawn before Robin rushed him. Giving up on loading the arrow, the archer swung his bow directly at the Boy Wonder, but Robin slid directly through his legs, completely avoiding the hit. Reacting quickly, Red Arrow moved with his momentum and turned around, but the ninja had disappeared again.

He had just enough time to process the empty air in front of him before someone jumped onto his back.

"You know, when I said I got your back, this is not what I meant." joked the Boy Wonder.

Red Arrow reached up and threw the small boy off of him. As Robin flew through the air, a small explosive planted on Roy's quiver detonated, and caused Red Arrow to fall to the floor. Running with enough speed to make any speedster jealous, Robin ran over to his mind controlled friend and pinched a nerve on his neck. Roy swiftly fell unconscious.

Batman had finished his fight with Black Canary, and was zip tying the unconscious womans hands behind her back. Robin quickly followed his mentor's' lead, and soon the four heroes were tied up together in the center of the room.

"What did you notice about them?" Batman questioned.

Robin smirked, _T_ _he world could be ending, and Batman would still be able to turn it into a lesson_. "They fight almost the same as they did before, but they obviously don't have their memories. They use the same fighting style, meaning that they have the same weaknesses."

"Emotions?"

Robin pondered this. "They obviously still feel pain, and when they're surprised they react normally. When Black Canary spoke she sounded strained, like it was hard for her to speak. Do you think that's important?"

"It shows that their hold on the League is weaker than we imagined."

"That's good then, right? More of a chance to turn them back to normal."

Batman didn't answer, instead reaching up to his communicator. "Report" he barked to the scientists. After a few moments of silence he motioned for Robin to grab one of the unconscious heroes. _Well I can't carry Ollie, or Dinah, I'm not THAT strong._ Thought Robin, as he walked to the small group on the floor. _I'm not gonna grab Artemis, 'cause carrying her could get weird. Well Roy, Looks like you're our first lucky contestant._ Robin grabbed the scarlet archer's arm and dragged it around his shoulder. Slowly, he shuffled back to Batman.

Nodding, Batman turned off his call. "The scientists believe that they created a viable cure and vaccine to the chip, we'll bring Red Arrow-" Suddenly a swirling red vortex opened up underneath Artemis, Green Arrow, and Black Canary. The unconscious heroes fell through the portal, and Robin and Red Arrow would have fallen back with them had Batman not grabbed his arm. The portal vanished as soon as it appeared, leaving no evidence that it had ever been there.

Robin's eyes widened in surprise and whipped around to face Batman. After studying the empty space for a few short moments Batman went to his son to help carry Roy. With Red Arrow being supported by them both, Robin broke the uneasy silence "If that portal was from what I think it was, then this somehow got a lot worse."

Batman had to agree. Fighting the Justice League was hard enough, but fighting a Justice League controlled by a Lord of Chaos was much, much worse. And the portal that Ollie, Dinah and Artemis had disappeared into had the telltale signs of chaos magic.

They carried the ex-sidekick down to the labs and strapped him to a medical table. Once he was secured, one of the scientists walked up to the Duo with a container filled with the prototype antidote. "Good, you have a test subject." adjusting his glasses, he turned to the heroes. "How much time do we have to test the antidote?"

"Not enough." Grumbled Robin, sitting down in one of the chairs. "The League is probably regrouping. Meaning Klarion can teleport all of them here at the same time."

The scientists nearly dropped the container in shock. "T-The _entire_ Justice League." He stuttered. How the two heroes weren't completely freaking out right now was beyond him.

"Doctors, test the antidote now," Growled Batman. "We need to move." At his words they somehow paled even more.

"Y-yes, u-um... well, the antidote is administered the same way we presume the chip was." The scientist opened the container, showing the forty-some chips inside. "In _theory_ it will mask any signals coming from the original chip. It will continue to mask the signal for all of it's lifetime, so if another chip is inserted into the host, it should be useless."

"Side effects?"

"Well if there isn't a chip already in the host, than none." The other scientist interjected, "But, If there is one, we estimate that there may be a backlash from the two technologies. The two combined could cause a pulse of energy. The energy would normally be harmless, but since it's in such close proximity to the host's head, it might knock them unconscious. They would be out of it for at least 5 hours, and if they didn't wake up in the next 24, they would fall into a permanent coma."

Batman and Robin turned to each other and seemed to have a silent conversation. The scientists watched in amazement as they came to an agreement. It seemed like they had had an argument, Robin had won, and Batman was not happy about it. Smirking slightly, Robin walked up to the scientist holding the antidotes.

"I'll have one of those antidotes please." The scientists gasped, realising what he wanted.

"Hold on," Said the one holding the container. "You're going to test it on yourself? You could die! this is just a prototype!" He exclaimed.

"We know the risks when we started." Batman grunted, obviously unhappy with what his protegee was doing, but not making a move to stop him.

The scientists only gaped at the boy as he picked up one of the new chips. "It's this or waiting. And if this saves more innocent lives I know our friends would want us to take the chance." Robin stated.

And with that, Robin placed the chip on his neck.

* * *

When his vision cleared, the first thing Robin realized was how comfortable the floor looked.

"Ugggghhhhhhh-"

"Robin are you alright?"

He looked up from the tempting floor and gazed at the shocked expressions of the scientists in front of him. "...mmmhhhmm" He responded slowly. His mouth felt like cotton, and his brain felt like it had been scrambled. It was nearly impossible for him to form a coherent thought.

Robin let his head hang again, and he saw that the only reason he was still standing was because of the strong hands supporting him. Limply throwing his head back he smiled up to his father. "H-hheey B..."

Batman gave Robin a glare that to anyone else looked disappointed, but Robin knew that he was actually worriedly checking him over. Giving his son one more glance, he turned to the scientists. "How long until he's coherent again?"

The braver of the two scientists could only shrug. "W-well Batman, Uh we've never really tested..." He stuttered when he saw the Dark Knight's glare directed at him. "I-... well, we don't know."

However, as the two spoke, Robin was beginning to come to his senses. _Well, now I know what a Hangover feels like._ He thought, shaking his head. _I'm pretty sure Batman will be happy about that. I've never gotten drunk, but I don't ever want to if this is anything like the aftermath._

Shaking his head, Robin managed to get his feet under him. Noticing that his protege could stand up again, Batman let go of his arms and stepped away. "How do you feel, Robin?" he questioned.

Groaning, Robin leaned against a nearby desk. "Like someone used my head as a soccer ball." he mumbled. Batman nodded and approached the scientists. "Were taking this." He said, gesturing to the container holding the antidote. The scientists only blankly nodded and handed it over.

"Robin, can you walk?" called Batman. Shaking his head clear for the final time, Robin bounced over to the deactivated holo-projector. "Yeah Batman, I'm good. My head's fully cleared." Both of them knew he was lying, but the scientists didn't need to know that.

Batman swept out of the room to call the Batplane, And Robin stepped over to the unconscious and tied up Red Arrow. He took one of the antidotes and placed it on Roy's neck. "If this works, I don't envy the headache you'll wake up to" Robin muttered. "And if it doesn't, then I guess we figured out why you were so obsessed with finding the mole."

 _I really really hope this works._ Thought Robin. _I don't know what I'll do if you're the mole Roy... Me, you and Wally are practically brothers, and-_ His internal monologue was cut short when he heard the Batplane hovering over the open skylight.

Five cables shot down through the open windows, and Robin quickly attached four of them to Roy's stretcher. Pressing a small button on his glove, the cables retracted back into the sky, taking the unconscious archer with them. Robin grabbed the final cable, and as he was attaching it to his belt he addressed the scientists.

"Look, us Bats don't really say thank you," He smirked "But you might have just helped to save the world." then Robin was whisked into the sky, leaving a silent laboratory and two starstruck scientists behind.

* * *

Robin groaned as he sat down. Usually he loved flying in the Batplane, the incredible height and speed was normally exhilarating. But that was only when his head didn't feel like it had been trampled on by elephants. Therefore, he barely reacted when Batman gave the control of the plane to him. He could fly it with his eyes closed, It wasn't that big of a deal.

Ok, it was kindof a big deal, seeing how he was one of the few privileged individuals to _ever_ fly the Batplane, but it wasn't a big deal to _him._

Robin let his mind wander when Batman walked into the back of the plane. _I wonder why it hurts so much._ He mused, as he heard Batman's small grunt of pain when he put the antidote on his neck. _I mean, aren't antidotes supposed to stop you from being in pain?... Heh, well... taking it literally. Anti means against or opposed, and dote means really fond of... so anti-dote is like against liking something? Than what's Pro-dote? Really really liking something? huh..._ As he continued to think for a few minutes, Batman slowly came back into the cockpit.

"Hey, Batman?" asked Robin, as he handed back the controls. "I think I came up with a new word. Wanna try and figure it out?" Robin continued talking, not waiting for an answer. "Ok, I really anti-dote the side affects of this antidote. And I would really Pro-dote some Advil or something."

Batman glanced over to Robin. Bruce had to stop himself from laughing, but he couldn't help but smirk. _The world could be ending, and my kid could still lighten my mood._ Batman shook his head and ruffled Robin's hair. "Kid, that new word is whelming."

Robin's face broke out in a grin and he cackled loudly. Dick knew Bruce tried to hide his amusement while under the cowl, but Robin knew he had almost made Batman laugh.

"So. Boss." Robin started, flopping back into a seat. "What's our next move?"

Batman was silent for a moment before responding. "Were over Gotham now. We need to get back to the bunker and determine where-" He was interrupted by a sonic boom. Glass shattered, dogs barked, people screamed. Then another boom. In the aftermath of the second one, Gotham became eerily quiet.

"Turn on the news. Now." Barked Batman. Robin turned on his holo-glove began to scan through the multiple channels he was linked to. His eye's widened when he saw what was being broadcasted Live.

"Batman... We have a problem."

* * *

 **Reviews are appreciated!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own it.**

* * *

"This is Vicki Vale, reporting live from Gotham, where Superman has just appeared on top of the Aviary building. The Man of Steel hasn't moved since he arrived at supersonic speeds, and he appears to be waiting for something." Vicki brushed her hair out of her eyes to get a better view. "My guess? He's waiting for Batman."

Every person in Gotham was watching television. Everyone had heard the sonic booms Superman had made. Some News helicopters, like the one Vicki Vale was in, were circling the tall skyscraper where Superman had appeared, and were documenting what was happening from a safe distance. It wasn't everyday that Superman made his presence so obvious, so something big had to be going on.

However, one reporter decided she wanted something more than a distanced camera shot.

"Carrie!" Vicki Vale yelled to her pilot. "Land on the roof!"

"B-but Miss. Vale I-" Stuttered the woman.

"Don't 'Miss. Vale' me! It's been twenty minutes! If Batman doesn't show up, I _at_ _least_ want to ask few questions!"

Carrie gave a hesitant nod, and the helicopter began to descend. When she landed, Vicki fixed her hair and raced out onto the rooftop. Motioning to her cameraman, they approached the Man of Steel.

Vicki cleared her throat. "Superman, I'm Vicki Vale, Gotham Gazette, I was wondering if you could answer a few questions for me?"

Superman didn't react. In fact, he didn't even shift his gaze away from Gotham.

 _That's strange,_ Thought Vicki, _Normally it's Batman who doesn't answer to reporters, isn't Superman supposed to talkative?_

"Uhh, Sir? Super-"

"What are you doing here Miss. Vale?" Growled a deep voice behind her.

The reporter span to face the new person. Vicki Vale, her cameraman, and all of Gotham gasped when they saw the Dynamic Duo.

With the rising sun behind them, and their capes flowing around them, their dark silhouettes were constantly shifting. On television, Batman was pure darkness. His only defining feature was the ears on his cowl and the bat symbol on his chest. He was huge and intimidating and while Robin was smaller, he was just as terrifying. As his cape fluttered, the red and yellow underneath was revealed. The flickering color around him glowed like fire. His confident smirk taunted the people watching him. Their auras seemed to complement each other, the darkness with only the tiniest of light, and the light shrouded in darkness.

They both looked like they belonged on the rooftop, and Vicki, who prided herself on her fearlessness, couldn't help but be intimidated. No one had ever captured much footage of the Duo in action, and Gotham was in awe of their heroes.

It was obvious that Batman and Robin were confident on their home turf, but they were not at ease. Underneath their flapping capes, batarangs were in their hands, ready to strike.

Only Superman was not distracted by their theatrics. He turned, and when he saw the two before him, his eyes began to glow red.

"Batman!" The Vicki squeaked, Not noticing the danger behind her. "I- We wanted some answer-"

"Now is really not the time." Growled Robin. Vicki Vale blinked down at Robin. Robin never growled.

 _Oh we're in deep shit aren't we?_ Vicki thought.

Robin grabbed her arm, and began walking them back to her helicopter. Her cameraman followed. "Look, Miss. Vale. You don't want to be on this rooftop right now."

"What- Robin?" She spluttered. "W-why are Batman and Superman-" Robin cut her off with a laugh.

"You think that is Superman?" He asked incredulously, looking behind them.

 _OK. What?_ now Vicki was mad. _Was he talking down to me?_ "Of course it it!" She cried. She tried to turn around, But only got a glance of the two leaguers before Robin whipped her around.

"No! Don't turn around." He snapped. "Did he see you looking at him?"

"Who?"

"Superman"

She thought back, and realized that she remembered glowing red eyes facing her direction. She gulped, "Yeah, h-he did."

"Crap. Walk faster."

At this point, everyone watching was confused. Why was Robin telling them to get away? Superman was a good guy... right?

"What is going on?"The reporter asked.

Robin looked back, and picked up his pace. They were halfway to the helicopter. "Well Miss. Vale. The Justice League aren't themselves right now."

"Wh-"

"No, don't talk. Keep walking, I need to tell you this." Ignoring their sputtering, he said, "Look, The Justice League was infiltrated and attacked." Not stopping his monologue, he pushed the two people into the helicopter. "Only Batman and I escaped. For the past few hours, The world hasn't had a Justice League."

Vicki noticeably paled. "Wha- wait- Are they dead?" She stuttered.

"We don't know, but we needed to get this to the public. None of the League can be trusted right now, neither can any of their partners." The cameraman gasped. Robin nodded, glad that they were getting the message. " _Now_ do you see why we need to get you off this roof?"

He reached to close the door and said one final sentence that chilled Vicki to her core. _"The League is down._ That isn't Superman."

And that's when the top of the building exploded.

* * *

"Look, Miss. Vale. You don't want to be on this rooftop right now."

 _Idiot Reporters, they would walk into a firefight to get a story_. Batman internally growled. _They could have ruined the entire plan if he had talked to them._

Batman didn't look at his protege when Robin began to lead the reporters away. His only focus was on the alien in front of him. Superman.

"You." The one word was growled out by the Man of Steel with more malice than Batman thought was possible for the Alien.

 _Get any more blunt and angry and I might have to start calling you Conner._ He thought as he stepped closer.

"Boy Scout." Batman acknowledged. Superman's eyes glowed even more red at the nickname. _Good, I got a reaction from him, that will buy Robin more time. "_ Although, you're not really him, just a puppet."

Like Black Canary, Superman responded in a robotic and detached voice. "You're Wrong. I am- We Are the real Justice League. Just under different management."

Batman smirked, "That's one way to put it, Klarion."

The Man of Steel's control stumbled. His eyes went wide, and his mouth opened in shock. "How could you possibly-" He whined, proving without a doubt that it was Klarion controlling the Man of Steel. However, right before Klarion's inevitable temper tantrum, Superman's entire demeanor began to change. His incredulous and angry face turned calmer, and he held his head higher than ever before. "Ah, Batman," He said in a snooty tone. "the world's greatest detective. How could I forget?"

Batman took the sudden change as someone wrenching the controls of Superman away from the witch boy. "I assume I am talking to the person in charge."

Superman sneered. It was such a foreign expression on his face it looked painful. "Indeed."

"Why are you doing this?" He questioned.

"Isn't it obvious?" Superman said, spreading his arms wide and gesturing to the city below. "I want to discredit the Justice League."

Batman narrowed his eyes. "Let me rephrase my question. Why are you really doing this?"

Superman laughed a cold, condescending laugh. "Oh, Batman, you want me to give up my entire plan? When I've already figured out yours?" He turned to where Robin was leading the civilians away. "You can't stall long enough to save the reporters, or Robin." his eyes began to glow red in a build up to heat vision. "And what's to stop me from killing all of them right now."

Batman stepped closer to the Kryptonian, forcing his attention back onto himself. "Me." He growled.

"You?" he sneered. "You're just a man. Extraordinary? Yes. But mortal."

Batman zeroed in on the last word Superman had said. His skills that he had honed for years as a detective were screaming at him. The word had significance, he just needed to realize why.

A few seconds passed before he smirked. Villains were always idiots. As usual, in their arrogance, they had tried to gloat and had made a mistake. Batman crossed his arms, discreetly pushing a button on his glove.

"I may be _mortal_ ," he snarked, emphasising the word. "but underestimating me will be your downfall... Savage."

Superman looked outraged, and his eyes blazed scarlet. Realising his time was up, Batman sprung away. Superman activated his heat vision, and while rolling away from the lasers, Batman threw pellets down by Superman's feet. The Man of Steel's heat vision ignited the smoke drifting out of them, and the ensuing explosion enveloped the top of the building.

* * *

Vicki Vale had gotten into the helicopter in the nick of time, and she was lucky enough to be strapped in a seat before the explosion. Robin, however, was not so lucky. Being behind Vicki, and trying to close the doors, the shockwave had thrown him through and nearly out of the helicopter. It was only from years of experience that he had been able to grab hold of door on the other side.

As the roof around them was thrown into chaos, the pilot panicked and took off, quickly taking the helicopter back in the air, bringing Robin with it. Soon it was hovering over the smoky rooftop.

Robin shook the dizziness out of his head and climbed back into the open carriage of the helicopter. He made sure that Vicki wasn't too stunned from the blast and then he crouched by the open door to look at the building they were circling. He either didn't seem to care, or notice, how high in the air they were, as he was perched right on the edge.

Robin began to fiddle with his gloves, pressing small buttons and opening hidden latches, it was only then that Vicki realized that Robin's uniform had longer sleeves than usual. flicking another switch, the Boy Wonder smiled back at Vale. "Now don't try and get more exclusive interviews until after we've done our job. OK?" he said.

Vicki, speechless, nodded and glanced at the roof. The smoke was slowly clearing from the top of the building and two large silhouettes were visible, but she couldn't see their details. She turned her attention back to the boy next to her.

He was still messing with his gloves when a green glow suddenly illuminated his face.

"Ah Ha! There we go!" He exclaimed, waving around his glove. Glowing tubes ran along side his arm, and a large circle of glowing liquid was positioned on the back of his hand. The tubes were filled with toxic-looking green liquid. Vicki thought it looked a lot like Venom, the drug Bane used, except it looked a lot more menacing.

Vicky gasped, suddenly recognising the glow. "Is that Kryptonite?"

Robin nodded, taking his eyes off his hands and back to the barely visible figures on the roof. "Highly diluted liquid Kryptonite. It shouldn't kill him, It'll just give me a fighting chance."

Robin checked his equipment one final time before nodding at nothing and suddenly standing up. "Now if you'll excuse me, that's my cue." Saluting the camera cockily, Robin stepped backwards into open air.

Vicki gaped at the quickly falling boy, and unwittingly remembered an interview with Superman after some general from his home planet had tried to take over the world.

 _"Now Miss. Vale. When facing against a Kryptonian, it's important to remember three things." Said the smiling Superman._

 _"One: If you don't have some form of kryptonite, your best bet is to get as far away as possible._

 _Two: If they hit you, it's over._

 _Three: If you're Batman, you can ignore these rules."_

The reporters watched in amazement as Batman used rule three to its fullest extent.

* * *

Emerging from the smoke, The two figures were defined into the Man of Steel, and the Dark Knight. Batman seemed bigger, and his eyes were glowing red instead of it's normal white.

Growling, Superman flew directly at Batman and attempted to punch right through him.

He had nearly met his mark, when suddenly, Batman just wasn't there. Dodging at the last second, Batman spun out of the way, and Superman's momentum sent him into a wall. Growling in anger, Superman emerged out of the roks and prepared to launch another attack.

He had just raised a fist when Robin landed on him. Usually, a single human's weight wouldn't have phased the Kryptonian, but the Kyrptonite gloves that were pressed into the sides of his head was something he couldn't ignore. He fell to the ground with a thump, and Robin flipped off of him and onto the rooftop.

Superman slowly stumbled to his feet, but he had no time to recover before he was hit with a jaw cracking punch. He was again knocked backwards into the wall. Batman had just delivered a punch that should have easily broken his hand.

The reporters watched, amazed, as he stood in front of the fallen Kryptonian and didn't seem affected by the punch at all. They soon realized why when Batman took off his cape. The dark cloth was hiding the suit of armor that nearly doubled his size. They could see mechanical aids throughout the suit, and he now had a fully covered facemask. The iconic Bat Symbol was red to match his intimidating glowing eyes.

Inside the suit, Batman smirked. This suit had been specifically designed to take down Superman. The Man of Steel wouldn't know what hit him.

Digging himself out of the rubble yet again, Superman growled, and lunged blindly. But the Kryptonite made him weaker, and that small difference allowed Batman's well placed punch to send him directly over the side of the building.

Vicki gasped as she saw the Man of Steel struggle to stay aloft, or at least slow his descent. Failing to stop his fall, he crashed into the ground, creating a small crater with his impact. Before Superman could begin to move, Batman landed on him as well. The crater doubled in size at his impact, and when the dust cleared, Batman was holding Superman up by the cape. He raised his fist to deliver another punch that would shatter a normal man.

However, Superman seemed to have regained some of his strength, and his punch was caught. Not a moment later, Batman was thrown across the street and into a car. The giant Bat suit rolled out of the way of the oncoming metahuman, who had landed where he had just been with earth shattering strength.

Standing up again, Batman yelled, "Robin!"

Out of nowhere, Robin grappled back into the action, Flipping off of his grappling hook, he rolled directly in front of the Man of Steel and held up his hands. The Kyrptonite had an immediate effect, and Superman stumbled backwards. Now on his hands and knees, Superman looked up at Robin.

"Why you little-" His insult was cut short by Batman kicking him in the face.

"Language!" Robin joked, faking hurt. He then quickly flipped out of the way, letting Batman hit Superman again.

The hit sent him flying across the road, and slammed him into a store. Before the dust settled, an enraged Superman flew back out and rammed himself into Batman. This time it was Batman that was sent flying, and he landed directly on top of a car.

As Batman struggled to regain his footing, Superman hovered a few feet above him, ready to strike again. Then Robin appeared, jumping onto Superman's back and holding on for dear life. His energy slowly draining, Superman did the best he could to dislodge the acrobat, but he soon dropped to the ground. Unfortunately for him, he dropped right next to where Batman was waiting.

As the fight continued, The reporters could see a pattern emerge. Robin would weaken Superman with his gloves, and Batman would use his Batsuit on steroids to hit him with as much force as possible.

Robin would never approach the Man of Steel the same way, sometimes flipping overhead, other times sneakily emerging from the shadows. He even used his grappling gun multiple times to bring Superman stumbling towards him.

Batman was brutally efficient. Each move was calculated, controlled, and effective. Batman used pressure points to stun Superman, and he aimed his kicks and punches to continue to destabilize his opponent. He made it impossible for superman to hold his ground.

Both of them would switch places easily as soon as the other one was done. Robin never stayed in Superman's grabbing distance for too long, and Batman never gave him any recovery time. They worked together perfectly, and people who had never seen them in action soon realized why they were called the Dynamic Duo.

Their strategy continued to work, and Superman was being beaten back, until he managed to gather his bearings quicker than before.

As Robin flipped in again to weaken the Kryptonian, Superman summoned the last bit of his power and shot his laser vision directly at the boy. Robin wasn't quick enough to dodge completely, and the lasers hit his right thigh. Robin cried out in pain, and crumpled to the ground.

Sensing an opening, Superman surged forward. As he got closer to the fallen Robin, he began to feel the affects of the gloves, and Superman stopped.

"I don't need to be any closer to end him Batman." he yelled, and turned around to face the Dark Knight. Batman was standing across the street, seemingly frozen from seeing his son on the ground. Superman sneered. "Get out of that suit, or he-"

Superman stumbled to a halt when he felt a sharp pinching in his neck. Struggling to turn his head, he was shocked when he saw the boy standing directly behind him and not bleeding out on the floor. The last thing Superman saw before he blacked out was the pair of Kryptonite gloves abandoned on the sidewalk.

* * *

Vicki couldn't believe her eyes.

Gotham couldn't believe it's eyes.

The Dynamic Duo had just taken down Superman. Two non-meta vigilantes had just taken down the most powerful man in the world.

As they saw the carnage on screen, for the first time people wondered, _Maybe the most powerful doesn't mean the most dangerous._

Vicki turned to her cameraman.

"Please tell me you got all of that."

* * *

The only reason Vandal Savage's fist hadn't gone through the screen was because he had 50,000 years to practice self control.

Klarion, although much older, had no such control.

The witch boy screamed and blasted red energy around the room. " _How_ did they manage to take out my most powerful puppet?"

"Patience, Klarion." Vandal said, trying to calm the Lord of Chaos before he threw a full tantrum.

"But I wanted to play with them!" Klarion whined. "And now we don't even have Superman to destroy things with!"

"Send Aquaman and Flash instead. They can cause adequate destruction."

"They're not-"

"Do it!" The immortal growled. "We've wasted enough time trying to capture two _regular_ humans. Send the ones we have, and bring all others to the station."

"So we're not gonna look for them?"

"Why bother?" Vandal smiled and turned to look at the earth below them. "If we wait long enough, Batman and Robin will come to us."

* * *

 **Reviews are appreciated!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I don't own it.**

* * *

Robin looked over Roy's vitals as the Batplane flew over Gotham. Everything was normal, Roy looked like he was sleeping peacefully, Robin just couldn't get him to wake up.

Finishing up with his first patient, he looked over to where the Man of Steel slept.

"Hey B?" Robin asked. Batman grunted in response, and he took that as his cue to continue. "The Arrows were paired together, right? So where was Superboy?"

"Most likely, Vandal realized that Superman and Superboy almost never work together." Batman said from the cockpit. "I wouldn't be surprised if Clark fought harder against their control when he was paired with Conner."

"Heh." Robin laughed. "For once, Clark's lack of parenting skills helped us."

Leaving the med-bay in the back of the plane, Robin walked up behind his mentor. "So where are we going?"

"The Bunker. It has holding cells that can contain them both, and Alfred and Lucius have the gear we need there as well."

"And after that?"

Batman smirked. "I want you to figure it out."

Robin gaped at his mentor. "Seriously? A test? Now?" he asked incredulously.

"Everything is a lesson Robin, Study what we know and what we've learned. You'll figure it out."

Robin grumbled and sat down in the co-pilot seat. Batman was right, it didn't mean he had to like it. Their silence was interrupted a few minutes later when they heard a loud groaning echoing from the back of the plane. Without a word, Batman set the plane on autopilot and Robin leaped out of his chair.

Roy was the one making all the noise. He was struggling and thrashing against the restraints that held him against the bed.

"Roy!" Robin cried, running to his friend's side. "Calm down! You're safe!" Roy's head snapped towards Robin, but his unmasked eyes showed dilated pupils, and it was obvious he wasn't completely seeing the people in front of him.

"R-rob?" he stuttered.

"Yeah man, I'm-" Robin was cut off when Roy tipped to his side and decided that now would be a very good time to empty his stomach.

"Gross."

"...'Mm sry."

"I'll just... I'll get a bucket."

"Wsss goin on?" Roy asked when Robin placed a small bin next to him.

"What's the last thing you remember?" Asked Batman as he walked in, tactfully ignoring the vomit on the floor.

"Uhh... Think I wss with Jade."

Robin looked at his friend with shock. "Jade. Jade Nguyen. Cheshire? _That Jade?"_

"Yeah." Groaned Roy. "Damn My head huuurrts."

"Do you remember her touching your neck, at any point?" inquired Batman.

Surprisingly, Roy blushed. "Uhm. ...Well ahhh-Maybe." He stuttered.

Batman nodded and turned back to his partner, but Robin's focus was still entirely on Roy.

"When you say _with_ Jade... do you mean-?" He left his question unfinished, but when Roy refused to meet his eyes, Robin burst out laughing. "Artemis is going to kill you."

Roy groaned. "I'm gonna sleep now." In seconds, Roy was dead asleep again. Still smirking, Robin looked up to his mentor.

"I'm so getting a video of Artemis murdering him."

"What's more important, is that the antidote works." Batman stated. "And if what Red Arrow said is true, then Chesire planted a chip on him before he went to the watchtower."

"That's a relief." Sighed Robin, "Wait. Did you know about Roy and Cheshire already?"

"Have you figured out where we need to go?" asked Batman, completely avoiding the question.

Robin nodded and rolled his eyes at the obvious diversion tactic, but not really caring.

"Explain it then." Batman ordered.

"There's really only one place Vandal would go." Robin began. "His whole deal is superiority, so he's gonna be in a place that makes him feel in control of everything. The controller will also be with him, and even if it's Klarion's magic, There gonna have to be able to monitor all the superheroes under their control, so they'll need to see things around the world." Robin looked to his mentor. "Logically that leaves only one option."

"Vandal Savage is on the Watchtower, with the rest of the Justice League."

* * *

Roy's first coherent thought was ' _Ow.'_

He had never had a headache this bad before, the only thing that had ever come close was when he had gotten a concussion from flying face first out of a window. And even then, the headache hadn't been as bad as this colossal assault on his skull.

He tried to open his eyes, but groaned and quickly shut them again. Everything hurt, and light only made it worse.

Something close to him shifted, and he could hear small footsteps approaching him.

"Roy?" asked a voice that hurt to hear. "Are you awake?"

He groaned in response, because even though whoever was next to him was speaking quietly, sound made his brain feel like mush.

"Roy, open your eyes." Commanded the voice.

Ever so slowly, Roy forced his eyes open. Above him he saw a stone ceiling, and a light that was very inconveniently shining in his face. He struggled to turn his head, but he was rewarded with the identity of the mysterious voice.

"R-rob...?" He groaned.

Robin's face split into a grin, and he reached for a glass of water. "Glad you recognise me." The boy stated, and as he spoke, Roy could feel parts of his brain start to work again. He tried to reach out and grab the filled glass in Robin's hand, but found that his hands and feet were restrained on the medical table.

"Yeah, sorry about that." Robin cringed and raised the glass to Roy's lips. "We had no idea what you'd be like when you woke up. You're not gonna attack me if I unstrap you, right?"

Roy gave him a bewildered look, but shook his head slowly. Seemingly satisfied with his answer, Robin put down the glass and began unstrapping his hands. As soon as he was able, Roy tired to sit up, and again, immediately regretted his actions. The world tilted with vertigo and he resisted his urge to throw up all over the nice clean medical floor.

"Yeah, I could have told you that was a bad idea." Robin mumbled, as he helped him into a sitting position. However, the upright position seemed to help clear his head, and he blearily looked around.

"Where...?" he asked.

"We're in the Bunker." Robin said, as if that was all the explanation needed. "Roy this is important, what's the last thing you remember?"

Roy coughed, either trying to clear his throat or cover his embarrassment. "Why- Why do you need to know?"

Suddenly Batman emerged from the shadows behind Robin, and Roy spun around so quick, another wave of nausea nearly knocked him out again.

Batman growled when he answered. "Because what you say in the next five minutes will determine if you walk out of this room."

* * *

After five minutes of desperately pleading to Batman that, _No_ he was not the mole, _Yes_ the last thing he remembers was an intense makeout session with Jade, and a _It's possible_ that she could have planted one of the starro chips on his neck without him noticing, the Dynamic Duo finally decided to let him know what was going on.

Surprisingly, It didn't make him feel better.

However for Roy, the worst thing wasn't the mind controlled Justice League. It wasn't because the public was now terrified of every superhero they came across. It wasn't even the fact that Vandal Savage could have probably taken over the world by now. No, the worst thing for Roy, was Batman's stubbornness.

"What the _HELL_ do you mean I can't help!?" Roy yelled from the edge of his bed.

"Roy, calm down." Robin said, trying to stop Red Arrow from standing up.

"Don't tell me to calm down." Roy pushed the Boy Wonder away and shakily stood up. "You two need my help!"

"Sit. Down." Growled Batman.

Still leaning heavily on the medical bed, Roy faced the Dark Knight. "I can fight! You two are against the _entire_ league! I-" His rant was cut short when Batman suddenly moved with incredible speed and slammed his palm into Roy's chest. Winded, Roy stumbled backwards into an awaiting chair. When he regained his breath, he raised his head. Batman looked as if he hadn't moved, and Robin looked torn between his friend and mentor.

"Sit down. Be quiet." Snarled Batman, and Roy suddenly had no intention to disobey him. "I said you couldn't fight. I didn't say you couldn't help."

Roy clicked his jaw shut. "What do you mean?" He asked, much more subdued.

"On a normal infiltration mission, neither Robin nor I need any extra assistance." Batman began. "However, in this mission, we are going to be taking the Watchtower."

"And the Watchtower is basically a hornet's nest of booby-traps circling the earth." Robin interrupted.

Batman gave Robin a reproaching glare as he continued. "Our current digital assistant is unavailable, as he is gathering the tools we need, so you will have to disable the traps on the watchtower as we progress."

Robin wrapped an arm around Roy's shoulder. "You're our eye in the sky, Roy."

Still not completely satisfied, but realising that it was the best offer he was gonna get, Roy nodded. "I can live with that."

* * *

In a secret room, on a secret satellite in space, two figures stepped out of a secret Zeta tube. The room they stepped into seemed to be entirely concrete, and the only possible exit seemed to be the transporter they had just stepped out of.

"I can't believe that this has been here this whole time!" Robin said in a hushed voice, gesturing to the small transporter. "I could have snuck up on the watchtower with this!"

"This Zeta Tube had to remain hidden." Reprimanded Batman, who walked to the other side of the room. "The facets in the rock surrounding this room negate Superman's X-Ray vision, but if you randomly appeared one day, someone would investigate."

"And then we wouldn't be able to get to the watchtower completely undetected, Yeah, I know." Robin said.

Batman placed his hand on the wall , and the outline of a door appeared. The door had about 5 different levels of security and was designed to withstand Meta-level attacks, so it would take a while to open. As they waited, Batman tapped his communicator. "Red Arrow, Do you read me?" He asked.

"Loud and clear, Batman." Roy responded into both of their ears. "and _wow_ , you weren't kidding when you said the Watchtower had a lot of traps."

"Status of the league?" Batman ordered.

Typing could be heard from the other side of the connection. "Heat sensors show that Vandal Savage paired each hero up, and their patrolling different floors. And I've got video surveillance confirming that Which Boy and the Immortal Jackass are in the Monitor Womb. Superboy, Aquaman, Martian Manhunter, Green Lantern, Flash, Hawkoman, and Wonder Woman are unaccounted for."

"Not the best odds." Robin hissed, as he checked his belt one last time.

"Yeah," Roy agreed, "But when has that ever stopped you two?"

Robin was about to laugh, when the door opened with a creak. Together the dynamic duo crept down the hallway until they reached a fork in the path. Batman spared Robin a glance, and put one comforting hand on his shoulder. To Robin, that small gesture of comfort meant more than any words could say.

Giving his mentor a nod and a small smirk, the two parted ways and ran down the different corridors.

* * *

Black Canary and Green Arrow walked side by side down the long hallway. Ollie had his bow drawn and loaded with an explosive arrow, and Dinah was constantly looking over her shoulders. Both of them still looked bruised from their previous skirmish with the Bats.

However, neither of them noticed a small pellet dropped at their feet until it started to spray a silver gas everywhere.

Green Arrow lept back from the smoke, but unfortunately, his jump put him right underneath the descending black shadow. Batman landed directly on top of Arrow, snapping his bow, and bringing him hurtling into the floor. Batman placed one of the cures on Green Arrow, and turned to Black Canary.

Black Canary had instinctively taken a breath to use her Canary Cry, but whoever was controlling her had forgotten about the gas, which swiftly invaded her lungs. This proved to be a mistake, as the metallic element of the gas absorbed her scream and reflected it back into her. As soon as she tried, the shock from the amplified sound waves inside of her body threw her into a wall. Before she could stand up, Batman placed the chip on her neck.

* * *

Artemis was taking point on their patrol, with Zatanna behind her. The strategy was for Artemis to engage anything they saw until Zatanna could cast a spell. It was a good plan, before Artemis heard a thump behind her.

Spinning on her toes, Artemis turned and pointed her bow down the hallway they had just come down. Zatanna was slumped on the floor, unconscious a few feet in front of her.

Artemis spun around again when she heard Robin's signature laugh. However, she didn't see anyone in the hallway with her.

Drawing her bow, she slowly crept away from Zatanna and down the corridor. Then the lights in front of her flickered and she pointed her arrow directly at the new darkness. She spun around again when the lights behind her went out. Soon, the only light that was still on was the one directly above her.

Suddenly something glowing flew out of the darkness on her right and hit Artemis on the arm. It latched on directly above her elbow, and electricity ran through her body. Her arm spasmed, and she let go of her bow to get the device off of her. She wrenched it off, and saw that the device had not only been electrocuting her, but injecting her with something as well.

Suddenly woozy, Artemis couldn't do anything when Robin appeared in front of her with a chip in his hand.

There was a pinching at her neck, and then she was joining her friend on her floor.

* * *

"The Bats are on board!" Whined Klarion from where he was floating. "And they've taken away four of my Toys!" He gestured to the mystical screens in front of him. "Can I bring the others back? I want to _crush_ -"

"No!" Snapped Savage. "Keep them there. Batman and Robin will not get past our other agents. We need the away mission to cause as much chaos as possible, and without Batman or Superman, they will need more time."

"Spoilsport." Klarion pouted. "If they get up here, I can call them back, right?"

Vandal eyed the Witch Boy. "Yes. But it is unlikely they will. After all," He eyed the world he was standing over. "They're only mortals."

* * *

"Heads up Batman." Roy warned. "You've got company."

Batman slipped into one of the hangars and crouched down to answer Roy. "Who?"

"Captain Marvel and Kid Flash" Red Arrow answered.

Bruce took in his surroundings, and quickly embedded a small batarang into the floor. it began to beep menacingly, so he slipped into the shadows and waited for his trap to be sprung. He didn't have to wait long, as Kid Flash zipped into the hangar with Captain Marvel right behind him.

While they were distracted with the beeping device, Batman silently slipped out of the room and closed the door. He then opened the airlock, sending all the air and Wally towards the vacuum of space. Just before Kid Flash could fly out of the door, Batman shut it again, and Wally rammed full speed into three feet of reinforced steel.

Kid Flash was down, but Captain Marvel was only on the ground gasping for air. Opening the door separating them, Batman slipped a rebreather into his mouth and ran directly at the downed demigod. Marvel threw a sloppy punch in his general direction, but he flipped over it with ease, and dropped one of the chips onto the Captain. Continuing his momentum, he ran towards Wally, who was regaining consciousness.

Just as he was placing the chip onto Kid Flash's neck, Rocket and Icon flew into the hangar. Cursing at his luck, Batman threw down a smoke pellet. The entire hangar filled with black smoke. Icon lunged forward and tried to hit where he had last seen Batman. His fist only hit open air, and as he rose slowly to look around the smoky room, Rocket hovered slightly above him and tried to illuminate some of the darkness.

Unnoticed by the pair, a small silver ball rolled down by Icon's feet. Icon was the first to notice it when it burst, as pink foam erupted around him and immediately hardened. He struggled to gain any leverage against the strange substance, and he heard a crack when he tried to move his arm. The foam was strong, but it wouldn't be able to hold him for long, but he wouldn't get out in time to help his partner.

Rocket, who had flown up to avoid any excess foam, caught a glimpse of Batman through the dissipating smoke. She flew forward at her top speed to try and grab the disappearing man, and consequently, she didn't see the silver cuffs flying towards her. The two silver devices locked onto her ankles, and the powerful electromagnets inside of them activated. They slammed together, and then they brought Rocket down to the metal floor. As soon as she hit the ground, Batman appeared out of the last bits of smoke and gave her the cure.

A few minutes later, Batman left the hangar, and the four unconscious superheroes, behind him.

* * *

"You can't catch me!" Yelled Robin as he dodged yet another radioactive blast. He was currently being chased by Aqualad and Captain Atom down one of the lower observatory walkways. He would have been caught by the pair long ago, had the person controlling the heroes not chosen the pairs horribly.

Aqualad's electricity and water really didn't mix well with Captain Atom's radioactive powers. The two kept getting in each other's way trying to get to the Boy Wonder. This was shown amazingly well when Atom tried blasting Robin with heat, and Aqualad instinctively stumbled back.

However, Robin knew he was overpowered, so he ducked down a pathway and hid behind the corner. When he heard the pair of footsteps running closer, he signaled Roy to activate their trap.

Thanks to Roy, the walls beside the Atlantean and Human Reactor burst into flame. Kaldur was immediately overwhelmed with the heat and dryness, and collapsed. However Captain Atom raised his hands and soaked up the heat. The fires were almost out, when the floor behind them burst into flame as well. He turned again to put the fire out, but in the process, forgot about the boy behind him.

In a now familiar process, Captain Atom fell to the ground when the chip was placed on his neck.

Crouching down to infect Aqualad, Robin signaled Roy.

"Thanks for the help Red." Robin said.

"No problem Bird Boy." Responded Roy. "I've got two Leaguers two levels above you, you up for it?" He asked.

"Are you kidding?" Robin smirked. "I'm completely whelmed."

* * *

Batman shoved the pill into Plastic Man's mouth and sprung away before he was caught in the gasses. The pill released a special mixture of chemicals, courtesy of Mr. Freeze, that instantly solidified any liquid it came in contact with. It was fatal for humans, But for Plastic Man, it would only be an annoyance and immobilizer for a few minutes.

Plenty of time to give him the cure.

The problem was the man he had been paired with. The Atom had shrunk down as soon as he had seen Batman, and now could be anywhere in the hallway.

Instead of wasting his time looking around for the tiny man, Batman pulled another canister out of his belt and dropped it by his feet. It hissed open, and to the naked eye, nothing happened. To the Atom, however, it was an entirely different story.

The canister had released millions of microscopic bugs, whose sole programming was to find any lifeform their size and attack it. It had been developed by some eager young scientists who wanted to destroy harmful bacteria, Batman had procured it for another purpose.

Suddenly, a man grew up to normal size a few feet away from The Dark Knight. Whoever was controlling him was causing him to flail around, obviously trying to get away from the bugs that they had left in the microscopic world. However without his shrinking powers, Atom quickly fell.

Placing the cure on the two men, Batman continued on.

* * *

"Heads up Rob," Roy warned. "You've got two heavy hitters three sectors ahead."

"Who we talking about here?" Robin asked as he jumped into a vent and continued crawling forward.

"Dr Fate and Hawkman" Said Roy.

"Joy." Replied Robin, with only a _tiny_ amount of sarcasm.

"Yeah, but they're not moving." Roy observed, "All the others have been patrolling the lower levels, these guys look like their guarding something."

Robin peered out of a nearby vent cover. "Yup, I can see them." He stated. "They're in front of a door. Think you can cause a distraction so I can get in?"

"You got it Boy Wonder." Instantly, all three heads turned towards the sound of an explosion a few hallways down. The two mind controlled leaguers immediately flew towards the disruption. When they were gone, Robin slipped out of the vent and through the door.

"Alright, I'm in."Robin smirked and looked around the room. "Let's see-" Robin stopped speaking abruptly.

"Robin? Robin!" Roy immediately assuming the worst. "What's in the room? Robin respond! What's-" He was cut off by Robin's animalistic growl.

"Those monsters." He snarled. "They put Superboy in a pod."

In front of Robin was nearly the exact same scene he, Aqualad and Kid Flash had stumbled onto all those months ago. Conner was in his white solar suit, and three genomorphs were above him in the pod. Robin was so angry he saw red.

"I have to free him." Robin muttered, completely forgetting his comm was on.

"Negative," Batman ordered. "The last thing we need is to fight another Kryptonian."

"The Hell I'm not." Robin snapped. "He's my friend, they could be brainwashing him again! Removing his memories of the team! That's. Not. Happening." He growled.

Robin could tell Batman was grinding his teeth. "Disable the Genomorphs. They won't alter his mind. We'll save Superboy once we take down Savage."

"Fine." Robin said, knowing it was the best deal he was going to get. He threw his birdarangs at the three tiny creatures, and he only turned back to the door when he saw that none of their horns were glowing red.

"Fate and Hawkman are guarding the door again." Roy stated.

"Good." Robin snarled.

The door behind the two heroes slid open, and chips were placed on their necks faster than they could turn their heads. Robin continued walking forward as the two heroes fell behind him.

* * *

Klarion was really getting on Vandal Savage's nerves.

"Well, good job. You were completely wrong." Klarion deadpanned.

"Do you never shut up?" Vandal scowled.

Klarion threw his head back and cackled. "Oh you were so asking for it. I mean _seriously._ Everyone knows in the eternal battle between Chaos and Order, Order always favors the underdogs."

"What?" Vandal nearly yelled.

"Oh did I not mention that?" Klarion asked, with false innocence. "Whoopsies, my bad. Can I destroy the station now?" He asked.

"No." Savage said, voice even once again. "The Light still needs the Justice League. Under our control or not."

"Soooooo, lets go?" Asked Klarion.

Vandal eyed the three heroes in the room that were still under control. "No, not quite yet. I underestimated them, and they proved me wrong. Such a feat should not be rewarded with an empty room."

A deep voice echoed around the large room. "That was your first mistake Savage."

Suddenly, there was a clang by the door and Batman emerged from the shadows behind the fallen Red Tornado. Miss Martian was pulled down by an invisible line attached to the floor, and Robin swooped down on top of her. Startled, Klarion sent Green Lantern flying towards the Dark Knight. However, Hal wasn't able to evade hitting the small pellet that Batman had thrown which splattered his leading hand with yellow paint. The chip was on the flyboy before he reached the ground.

Batman and Robin shifted together when Savage started clapping. "Well done, Detectives." He sneered. "Perhaps I was mistaken in underestimating you. I assure you, it will not happen again."

"There's not gonna be a next time Savage!" Robin barked. "It's over!"

"Not hardly, Boy Wonder." Laughed Klarion. "But we'll leave you some parting gifts!"

At that moment, two portals opened. A red and black portal appeared behind the two villains, while a golden one thundered open meters above the floor.

"Play Nice!" Klarion teased, as the second portal boomed again and six figures appeared and jumped through it. When they were through, Aquaman, Martian Manhunter, Green Lantern, Flash, Hawkoman, and Wonder Woman immediately faced the two humans.

"Klarion, it's time to go." Vandal ordered, and they stepped through their portal. The portals closed, and there was a moment of ethereal silence. Each hero was in a fighting stance and stood as still as statues.

As they continued to stare at eachother, Robin shifted his footing. "Well that solves one mystery." He whispered in a slightly higher tone than his usual voice.

"Don't get hit." Batman stated, voice as hard as ever. But Robin heard everything he didn't say. _"They'll try to wear us out. Don't stop moving. Take down multiple targets at a time. Be careful."_

Then, as if given a silent order, the remaining Justice League charged.

* * *

 **Why must fighting scenes be so hard?**

 **Reviews are appreciated!**


	5. Chapter 5

**This chapter is the _reason_ I wrote this story. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own it.**

* * *

Had Robin flipped away even a second later, he would have been skewered by the trident that went flying by his face.

Unfortunately for him, Robin wasn't fast enough to evade the punch that literally appeared out of the floor, and he went rolling across the room. He shakily got to his feet as Martian Manhunter Re-materialized beside Aquaman.

Across the room, Batman was using nearly the same tactic as Robin, twisting and evading Hawkwoman and Green Lantern. They both were on the defence, narrowly avoiding hits and returning none of their own. Both Batman and Robin knew that they couldn't keep this up forever. What was worse, Wonder Woman and Flash were simply standing to the side, watching the fight, and waiting for the Bats to tire themselves out.

Robin met his mentor's eyes, and nodded. It was time to take a risk.

Suddenly, Robin pulled something out of his belt and sprinted directly towards the Atlantean and Martian. Neither could react quick enough as he slid like a professional baseball player right between them. Now far behind them, Robin, still crouching, flipped around and smirked at the two heroes. Raising the hand that wasn't on the floor, he beckoned the heroes closer. They didn't have to be a mind reader to know the boy was saying ' _Br_ _ing it on.'_

Aquaman rose to the challenge, and leapt into the air, driving his trident into the ground where the Boy Wonder had been a moment before. Robin simply rolled out of the way. But his roll turned into a flip when Martian Manhunter shapeshifted into a snake-like alien creature.

"Oh Wonderful." Robin deadpanned.

Further away, Batman was having a similarly difficult time with Hawkwoman and John. He spun out of the way of Shayera's mace before it could decapitate him, and then dodged another green glowing hammer that was trying to flatten him. Hawkwoman lunged at him again, and this time her mace connected with his shoulder.

It was just a glancing hit, but they could hear something crack as it sent Batman hurtling away from them.

Batman pushed aside the pain and stood up, raising his hands near his belt to grab something. Seeing this, Green Lantern tackled the Dark night from behind and held his arms to his side. Batman immediately hit at the arms encircling his chest, but Green Lantern only chuckled.

"I don't think so, Batman." John growled. "I win."

Green Lantern's uncharacteristic sneer fell off of his face when he saw Batman smirking. "Thank you, Vandal." Batman rumbled. Slowly, Batman uncurled the fist that had been hitting his arms, and dropped the yellow dart that had been hidden in his palm. John then stumbled back when his vision began warping. "You were predictable." Breaking out of his hold, Batman turned to face Shayera as Green Lantern fell to the ground.

"What did you do?" Vandal yelled through Hawkwoman.

Batman continued smirking, which only made Savage angrier. "Fear gas, courtesy of Professor Crane. The ring is trying to purge it from his system. Green Lantern won't be getting up for an hour."

Hawkwoman screamed in frustration and threw her mace at the Caped Crusader. He ducked as it flew over his head, and it soared across the room and imbedded itself in the wall three feet next to Robin.

"Watch it!" Robin called. "I'm- Umph - Dodging enough flying things already!"

Robin dove underneath the large tail that was whipping towards his chest at deadly speeds, and slid again to get out of the way of Aquaman's trident. Not sparing a moment to look at his surroundings, Robin leapt closer to the edge of the room. Thinking they had cornered him, Martian Manhunter and Aquaman lunged at the Boy Wonder, when Robin suddenly ran up the wall and flipped above them.

As he flew over their heads, they only had a split second to react before Robin threw something down at their feet. They had even less time to realize that the Dark Squire's random evasion hadn't acctually been random at all. The device on the ground beeped, and ignited the extremely flammable liquid that Robin had systematically spread across the floor.

Manhunter groaned and collapsed as soon as the fire was lit. Robin only had a few seconds to catch his breath before the wall behind the weakened Aquaman exploded in water.

Robin was thrown back by the sudden blast, and he landed right in front of the angry Thanagarian.

"Uhhh, Hi?" Robin squeaked. Hawkwoman yelled and raised her fists above her head. Robin's eyes widened. "Goodbye!" he shouted as he flipped backwards.

While Robin was distracting Hawkwoman, Batman had placed a chip on Green Lantern, and was now sprinting to the unconscious Martian Manhunter and Aquaman, who was struggling to stand. He was halfway across the room when a massive force slammed into his back. Batman was on the ground in an instant, and when he looked behind him, he saw that the Flash had joined the fight.

Before he could blink, Batman was hit again. Grunting in pain, because that had definitely broken a rib, Batman slammed his gauntlet into the damp ground.

Ice spread quickly through the water, as his glove had released a quick freezing agent into the liquid. In a few seconds, half of the room resembled an ice skating rink. Lifting himself into a kneeling position, Batman turned and saw Barry speeding towards him again, but this time at a much more manageable speed.

Although the Flash was still going way too fast for Batman to block anything, as Flash rammed into him for the third time, he redirected the Fastest Man Alive towards the, now standing, King of the Seas. With no traction on the ice, Barry slammed into Arthur at high speed, and then they in turn slammed into one of the larger parts of the destroyed wall. The already weakened Aquaman dropped like a fly.

Robin decided it would have been funny had they not been fighting for their lives.

Unfortunately, the angry Thanagarian in front of him had somehow gotten her mace again, and she was swinging it around like a madwoman. The electricity that surrounded the weapon hummed and made his hair stand on end each time he got too close to it. Hawkwoman raised it high above her head, probably to crack his head open, and Robin rolled through her legs.

Without enough warning, Shayera was unable to stop her electrified mace from slamming into the icy ground. The electricity immediately ran throughout all parts of the ice.

Everything was still for a fraction of a second, as if the universe was holding it's breath for whatever was building up.

Then the entire ice sheet vaporized at the exact same time.

The room filled with white, foggy steam. Any and all visibility was lost in the murky new cover.

Flash twirled around, searching for anything in the mist. He was a fast attacker, and he could hit anything, but he was nearly useless when he couldn't see. He heard a beep behind him, and he spun around again to face the noise.

Because of this, Barry didn't see the chip, but he could definitely feel it when it was placed on his neck. The Flash tumbled to the floor.

Shayara was having even less luck. She stumbled around in the mist, still swinging her weapon wildly, when she felt a tug at her ankle. A small cable yanked her backwards off of her feet, and she landed on her stomach with a thud. A small body landed on her back, pinning her wings and arms down, and before she could begin to struggle, the cure was placed on her.

From his place on Shayera's back, Robin could have jumped for joy. They were _so_ close. They only had-

His thoughts were interrupted when something was looped around his chest.

 _Oh..._

 _Oh no._

Robin had no time to react as the lasso tightened and _pulled._

He flew across the room, and slammed into the wall beside the Amazonian Princess. He slid to the ground gasping in pain, because everything hurt, and his head felt strangely egg-like. With half his mind on the lasso still around him, he reached up and touched the back of his head. His hand came back a little too red to be comfortable.

His scattered attention then zeroed in on the lasso that had suddenly shifted to his neck.

He could only struggle and pry his fingers closer to his throat, trying to get a breath of air.

His fingers slipped, and he let out a strangled gasp. He couldn't breath.

The rope was tightening, he could feel it start to cut into parts of his neck.

 _Oh God he couldn't breath._

His eyes widened, and his lungs burned even worse.

 _He was going to die._

His hands stopped struggling against the rope and flopped to his side. At the moment, he was on his knees, and the only thing supporting him was strangling him to death.

Darkness appeared on the edges of his vision.

 _Sorry, Bruce._

 _._

 _._

Suddenly, the pressure around his neck lifted, and Robin collapsed on his hands and knees. The lasso was still around his neck, but it was nowhere near as tight, so he desperately pulled at it until it was off of him completely and he could suck in a massive breath. Now on his hands and knees, Robin looked up to see the most welcome sight he had ever seen in his life.

Batman was standing in front of him protectively, Hawkwoman's mace in his hand. Wonder Woman was further away, examining her hand and glaring at the Dark Knight.

"Your first mistake, Vandal," Batman growled. "Was attacking the League." Wonder Woman narrowed her eyes and drew her sword in response. Batman was unfazed. "Your last mistake was attacking my son."

The sword and mace clashed together, and Batman and Wonder Woman began a deadly dance.

Robin looked between the two, still trying to recover from almost being strangled to death. Despite how impressive the two adult's display was, Robin knew Batman couldn't beat Diana in hand to hand combat, she was too strong. But he could give Batman an edge, if only he could get his legs to respond. Shakily, with one hand still balancing him on the wall, Robin got to his feet.

His snapped his head towards the fight when he heard Bruce grunt in pain. Diana had managed to slice a fairly large gash on his arm, on the opposite side of his already injured shoulder. Neither arm would have enough power to take another hit.

Seeing his father in danger motivated Robin to move faster than he thought was possible for someone who was as injured as he was. In a blink, Robin picked up the discarded lasso by his feet and roped Wonder Woman in almost the exact same way she had roped him. With her arms trapped by her side, Robin planted his feet and pulled as hard as he could.

It didn't have the same effect it had had on him, seeing how she was an immortal Amazonian warrior, and he was a smallish teenage boy, but it did make her stumble.

That stumble was all Batman needed, as he rammed the borrowed mace into the back of her knees. Wonder Woman fell, and Batman placed the chip on her neck before she could get back up again.

Batman slowly rose from the ground, and Robin stumbled over towards him. They were both breathing heavily, as if they had just run a marathon in record time. The six members of the League were scattered around the room, but all Robin could focus on was Batman's bleeding arm.

"I'm fine." Robin said, waving off Batman's worried look. He narrowed his eyes back at his mentor, and pressed his hand to his bleeding neck. Batman got the message.

 _I'll go get my wounds checked out as soon as you do._

The Dynamic Duo looked at the fallen heroes around them, and then down at the earth below them.

"Were not done yet," Bruce said, placing his least injured hand on Robin's shoulder.

Suddenly, a holo screen popped up in front of them.

"Happy New Year, Justice League." The automated voice informed the Watchtower.

Robin began to laugh maniacally, and Batman gave his partner a worried look.

"Next time," Robin wheezed, "I think we should just watch fireworks."

Batman's lips twitched upwards.

* * *

A few hours later, the Justice League and the Team had slowly returned to themselves. Superboy had been cured as soon as he stepped out of his pod, and Superman and Roy had teleported up from the bunker. Now the heroes of the world were gathered in the main meeting chamber. Each Leaguer was sitting in their designated seats, with their partner standing slightly behind them.

Not one person was smiling.

"While I thank you for bringing these missing sixteen hours to our attention," Wonder Woman said, cutting off Robin's explanation, "I believe we have another, even more pressing matter on our hands."

Martian Manhunter touched his screen, and civilian videoes of Batman and Robin taking down Superman popped up. Joining them were different images from the Watchtower's security, highlighting the plethora of weapons that had been used against the League and Team. The Martian gestured to the screens. "This concerns me." seeing the footage, discontented voices filled the room.

"Yeah, what the heck-"

"-it could have killed-"

"-in broad daylight? What-"

"You're kidding me!" Roy snarked from his place between Batman and Green Arrow. "Six of our members are unaccounted for, and you think _this_ is the problem?"

"It's a complete breach in our trust," Green Lantern stated, "Had they told us, it might be a different story-"

Superman raised his hand and cut John off, "I knew Batman had planned contingencies for if I went rogue, I practically asked him to. However, I do have a problem with making this issue so...Public."

"You're just mad he beat you up in front of the cameras." Green Arrow teased.

"Oliver..." Black Canary reprimanded. "Superman has a point, Batman's methods were extreme."

"Extreme?" Superboy slammed his hands on the table. "Had they not used their _methods,_ I would still be in a pod, and we'd all be under the control of Vandal Savage."

Wonder Woman placed a calming hand on his shoulder. "We're not arguing their effectiveness, Connor. We _are_ wondering why Batman and Robin have devices specifically designed to take down every person in this room."

"Their attack was obviously planned far in advance." Red Tornado added.

Hal leaned further back in his chair and crossed his arms. "They could have at least mentioned they had plans to kill us."

"Wait." Superman said. "Nothing they did was lethal."

"Tell that to Wally," Flash said, gesturing to the surveillance in front of him. "He nearly got thrown out the airlock!"

"Uncle Barry..." Wally groaned.

"Not now, Kid." Barry snapped, and he leveled his protective glare at the Dark Knight. "I want to know what _exactly_ you were thinking."

Diana clasped her hands in front of her. "Indeed. But allow Batman explain his actions before we place any blame. We can decide what to do from there."

Everyone turned to the two people who had remained silent through the entire debate.

Batman stood up next to his partner. "Robin and I created these contingency plans in the event that the Justice League misused their power. I won't defend my actions, because they don't need defending."

"No one here would ever go to the other side." Flash interrupted.

Batman narrowed his eyes at the speedster. "Then I must have imagined the past twenty four hours." He leveled his glare at the rest of the room, and many people tried to return it. "If you people can't see that an out of control Justice League would be a danger to the world, I won't wait while you avoid the real topic. I don't belong here."

The room was silent as Batman turned around and placed a hand on Robin's shoulder. "You have a choice," He said to his partner. "but you're always welcome home."

Robin rubbed his chin, and then looked at the heroes in front of him. "I have a question." He said, addressing the room. "Why are we included in the league?"

Everyone was taken back by his question, and as Robin met the eyes of every single person, he saw that no one had an answer. Robin stepped out of Batman's shadow and closer to the table.

"I'll tell you why." He stated. "The reason we can stand beside men who can literally move mountains, or run at the speed of light, is because we plan." Robin stepped forward again, and placed his hands on the table. "Batman and I must plan for every occurrence, train for every situation, because that is what it takes for us to be considered equals among you." He hissed. "Ask any Non-powered member of this team."

Green arrow looked down at the screen in front of him, and Roy shifted in his seat.

"I consider the League, and Team, part of my family." Robin continued. "But if you can't see past the fact that sometimes we have to plan for the worst..." Robin took his hands off the table and turned towards his mentor. "Then it's no choice at all."

No one spoke as the Dynamic Duo left the room.

After a few moments, Superman flew out of the room, probably to try and convince the two vigilantes to stay. But they all knew he wouldn't succeed.

Roy looked around at the silent heroes, and he locked eyes with Wally.

"What have we done?" he asked.

* * *

"So what now Bruce?" Robin was sitting on the edge of the medbay in the batcave, poking at the bandage around his neck.

Batman turned away from the monitor he was typing on. "We work. Gotham is the main priority now."

"Really? I was thinking sleep would be more important right now. Silly me."

"Indeed, Sirs." Alfred said, swatting Robin's hand away from messing with his neck. "I believe sleep would be the most beneficial at this point."

"Can't, Alfred." Bruce said. "I have to reassure the public that the League is trustworthy."

"You still didn't really answer my question," Dick groaned. "We're officially split from the League, what now?"

"We create a League of our own." Batman rumbled.

"Your cryptic answers aren't helping my headache."

"That wasn't cryptic."

Robin opened his mouth in shock. "You're thinking of extending the Family?"

Batman smirked in return, and different images of people suddenly popped up on the Batcomputer. "Something like that."

* * *

 **This is not the last chapter. Don't worry.**

 **Reviews are appreciated!**


	6. Chapter 6

**This chapter is long overdue. I know. I never intended for it to take so long.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own it.**

* * *

The air was much lighter higher up. It made it easier to fly faster, but the wind was a pain to deal with. Lower, you would go slower, but it was steadier.

Which is why, even after five years, Conner didn't like flying too high.

That didn't mean he didn't love flying.

Every time his feet left the ground, he couldn't help but feel a rush of fear, happiness, and excitement. There was nothing that could compare to soaring far over mountaintops, or lowering yourself down into caverns, with nothing but willpower suspending yourself in the air. Flying gave Conner the feeling of freedom that he so desperately needed.

And even though humans couldn't fly like Conner could, he now realized that some people were just meant to be in the air.

He understood why it had been so hard for Robin to keep his feet on the ground.

Conner blinked. It had been a while since he had thought of the little bird. It brought up a weird mixture of emotions for the clone. After all, Robin had been the one to rescue him from his pod both times. First at Cadmus, with the other partners, then again in the Watchtower, while the league had been under Vandal Savage's control.

He really should figure out how to thank Robin for that, though he didn't know how that conversation would go.

 _Hi Robin, I know we haven't talked at all in the past five years, but I'd like to thank you for freeing me from the second brainwashing pod that gave me more powers. Oh by the way, because of that I can fly now, and do other stuff that I'm sure you're really interested in. Anyway, how's the weather in Gotham?_

Yeah, that would go well.

Not.

Superboy snorted, shaking those useless thoughts out of his head. He would never be able to get within a mile of Gotham, much less find Robin.

Because in these past few years, Gotham city had mad it very clear that meta-humans were not welcome. The local government had only ever allowed them in to help with natural disasters, and even then, the paperwork alone had been horrendous. Not to mention the civilians actively tried to make their job miserable, throwing trash and rocks at them while they tried to help.

Because of the city's open hostility, the Justice League had also officially called it off limits to any of its newer members. Only a select few veterans were ever selected to help in Gotham. Either because they could take what the city threw at them, or because they were the few who were not too afraid of Gotham.

Which was impressive, because Gotham was a city to be feared.

The people were just as likely to stab you in the back as they were to thank you after saving their life. The GPD were brutal and swift, but no one could argue that they were not more effective. The politicians had a rap sheet as long as any prisoner, but they had a safety net of blood money and corruption to keep them away from any punishment. Gotham had earned it's reputation, and it was determined to keep it.

But when Conner had been reading one of the League's annual reports, a strange statistic had popped out to him.

Crime in Gotham was going down.

Not the big things, like Arkham inmates escaping and wrecking havoc, or serial killers going on a killing spree, that was still everywhere in Gotham. But the smaller, pettier crimes? They were definitely not as common in the city as they were five years ago.

Less kids had been joining gangs, not as many people decided to earn extra cash by robbing a bank, fewer politicians were obvious about their Mob connections. In fact, about one year ago, the drug cartel had taken a huge hit. Rumors had flown out of the city, the common thread between them was that absolutely no dealer in Gotham would ever sell to children.

Conner had been one of the first to take notice and he had been baffled by the numbers. His first reaction had been to notify the League, but their reply had been the exact opposite of his expectations.

Most of the Veteran members didn't, or pretended like they didn't care. On their radar, Gotham was a small black speck in a vast world of danger. They brushed him and any concerns he had off, telling him to focus on the bigger picture. So Conner went to his team and showed them what he had found. Together, they came to a very disturbing conclusion.

The Justice League had been holding Batman and Robin back.

The vigilantes didn't have to split their attention between Gotham and the League anymore. With their focus entirely devoted to their city, nothing distracted them from the mission. the Justice League had been too public, too much in the public eye. Batman and Robin thrived in the shadows. They worked and manipulated people without anyone noticing. They planned.

Maybe they didn't need the Justice League.

Maybe that made them more dangerous.

Maybe Batman and Robin were more terrifying when they didn't have anyone to answer to.

It was a chilling thought.

Of course, this was all just speculation, but it struck a chord with the young heroes. Maybe, the Justice League was holding them back too.

The next day, the team pretended like their conversation had never happened, but that thought had lingered in the back of their minds for a _long_ time.

Conner didn't know what the rest of his team thought, but he couldn't help but admire the two heroes. No powers, no outside help, just control an willpower. That had been all the two heroes needed to defeat the most powerful people on this planet. And now, they seemed perfectly fine avoiding those powerful people as well.

Although, ignoring might be a better word. Efforts had been made to reach out to the Gotham heroes. Almost appropriately, those efforts had been met with silence.

Conner sighed. Sometimes he wished he could ignore the League too. More specifically, he wished he could ignore Superman.

The Man of Steel had made it very clear that he still had absolutely no time for his clone.

A Volcano exploding? Sure. A kitten stuck in a tree? Not a problem. World catastrophe? I've got this.

A teenager who has most of your powers and some of your DNA, and does everything to try and impress you? Um, I don't have the time.

After almost six years of existing, Conner could count the amount of conversations he and Superman had had on one hand. And half of them had been Superman telling him the things he could do better.

Conner didn't care anymore. He was used to it.

He derailed that train of thought as well. He couldn't risk getting hung up in the past.

He couldn't thank Robin. He couldn't talk to Superman. He had to accept that.

He had to leave and move on.

Everyone else had.

Superboy scowled and turned his attention back to his flight, hoping for a distraction.

The Californian coasts stretched out below him. With the multicolored sunset on one side, and a range of mountains on the other, Conner managed to get lost in the scenery. Lowering himself to a rocky outcropping, he closed his eyes and relished the feeling of the ocean spray hitting his face. It was refreshing and relaxing, even though a normal human would have been freezing.

It was beautiful.

He could see why Wally and Artemis moved here.

Conner scowled, upset that him mind seemed determined to make him unhappy. Especially when he had no reason to be.

Wally and Artemis were happy, getting out of the life had been good for them. And both of them seemed lighter, like living in Palo Alto had lifted a weight off their shoulders. They even had a dog. It was so normal, so unlike anything Conner had ever experienced, but they were happy.

So, logically, he should be happy for them.

Simple.

But it wasn't.

Groaning, Conner sat down on the rock and put his head in his hands. He knew what the problem was, he just didn't wan't to confront it.

Superboy, The Boy of Steel, was jealous.

Everyone on the old Young Justice team had found a place where they belonged. Artemis and Wally were happy college students in Palo Alto. Kaldur was now the Royal Protector in Atlantis. Zatanna, Rocket, and M'gann were now fully fledged members in the Justice League.

His face scrunched up in anger when he thought of one girl in particular.

M'gann.

His emotions towards his ex was a whole new can of worms.

She had been the reason he had declined the offer to join the League.

His blood still boiled when he thought about what she had tried to do to his mind. He didn't care that she she had accidentally caused the villain to fall into a coma. He cared that she tried to alter his memories, tried to make him forget that it had ever happened. She had lost all of his trust in one fell swoop. How could he know that anything he ever felt around her was real?

He couldn't be close to her, for fear of M'gann trying to alter his mind again.

And no, he would not work with someone he couldn't trust.

Their breakup had started a chain of events that had ended Young Justice. The team didn't work together as fluidly as before, as M'gann refused to use the mind link. Because of this, and the increasingly dangerous missions, Wally and Artemis left for Palo Alto. Then, of course, they failed a mission spectacularly, and the Justice League had called it quits. Every remaining member had been told that they were ready, and was offered a place in the Justice league.

Everyone, that is, except for Conner. He was still living in the mountain, and supposedly he needed more observation before he could be fully trusted to stand beside the greatest heroes in the world.

That had been one week ago, and every day after, Conner's home had felt more like a prison than the place he had lived in for five years. It had taken him three days before he barreled out of the cave. Honestly, his patience had improved a lot, but not that much.

So here he was, flying across the country, visiting old friends, and brooding so much that it might make Batman proud.

The freedom felt so nice. Liberating. But Conner needed more.

Superboy turned to the left to face the ocean. There were a few islands, but then it was free and open water for miles. He rocketed forward in anticipation. Maybe if he went supersonic again he could-

Suddenly, something huge appeared beside Superboy.

Caught unprepared, he zoomed past it. He quickly skidded to a stop in the air, but when he turned around, the looming structure had dissapeared. Conner backtracked cautiously. His mind must have been playing tricks on him.

There was no way a skyscraper could have appeared out of thin air.

Superboy moved forwards, reaching his hand out, prepared for whatever he might find. A few feet later, He felt his hand press into something, which was surprising, because he couldn't see anything that his hand could touch.

The thing, whatever it was, hummed with some type of energy. Conner tried applying a bit of force to the strange energy wall in front of him. surprisingly, his hand slid through the field like it was made of Jello. However, as soon as it had passed through, his hand vanished. Superboy nearly ripped his hand back out, but stopped himself, realizing that he could still feel his limb.

"Ok," Conner said slowly, looking down at his missing limb that was not acctually missing. "Um, Ok. Stay whelmed."

This was super advanced technology, almost Watchtower level, and the League had Kryptonian, Thanagarian and Martian technology to back it up. And even then, they couldn't get a force field that could produce a cloaking device as high quality as this one.

Conner silenced all the questions racing through his head and decided to deal with this problem the only way he knew how. Superboy dove head first into the force field.

A giant tower appeared directly in front of the Boy of Steel.

Conner blinked. The structure's foundation was on one of the small islands he had zoomed past, and there were plenty of smaller rocks and islands surrounding it, preventing any boats from reaching the island from the water. From Superboy's position, there were no obvious entrances on the side or top of the building, but he could very easily see the turrets placed on the roof.

He looked at the tower in a mix of shock and trepidation, with no answers to any of his questions.

Who had access to the technology to keep something this hidden? Who would have gone to all that trouble? Was it a villain's secret lair? A government agency? Why put it in California?

And why on earth was it shaped like a giant T?

* * *

 **Reviews are appreciated!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I don't own it.**

* * *

Inside of the strangely shaped tower, three of its inhabitants were experiencing the same confusion as Conner.

"Should we let him in?" Beast Boy asked, a green face pressed against the window, as if doing so allowed him to get a better view of the flying figure.

"Are you stupid? Look at that symbol on his chest!" Responded Cyborg, who was also staring intently, just not quite as close to the window as Garfield.

Beast Boy scoffed at his friend. "He's way too young to be Superman! What if he just likes that symbol? What if he's one of us?"

The mechanical man cocked an eyebrow at his smaller green friend. "How do you even know he's young?" The larger boy gestured out the window to the teen flying awkwardly around their tower. "He's too far away for my sensors to even do facial recognition!"

"I... I just gotta feeling!"

"Oh, that convinced me."

"Really?"

"No."

"Come on! My animal instincts are screaming! That dude cannot be a bad guy!"

"Yeah, cause your instincts are soooooo reliable."

"Hey! I resent that!"

"Shut. Up." A girl in a purple hood growled, successfully stopping the argument. "You two are talking in circles."

"But Raven-" Beast Boy whined. The girl shot a look at the smaller boy and his mouth clicked shut. "I'm just sayin' he might need help."

"If he does, he'll ring the doorbell." Raven said, looking back down at her book.

"We have a doorbell?"

Raven ignored his question, not sparing the changeling a glance. "We'll wait for the others to get here." she said, "They'll know what to do."

Beast Boy looked like he was going to try and argue again, but his inevitable comeback was cut off when the elevator doors beside them slid open and four people stepped out.

A tall boy with purple eyes and gills lead a group into the room. He wore red and black armor that resembled a wet suit, but the gills on the side of his neck proved he was not normal.

"And here is the meeting area, commons, kitchen, and observation deck." Tempest said, gesturing around the area. "We use this room the most, besides the training center, so you will spend a lot of time in here."

The group the atlantean was leading was stopped from moving any further into the room by a very excited Beast Boy.

"Hiya newbies!" He exclaimed "How ya'll liking the tower so far? I'm Beast Boy. I wanted to be your tour guide, but Garth got the job because he was better with formalities and whatnot"

Tempest gently separated Garfield away from the boy he had latched onto as an octopus. "BB, don't scare them away." Laughed the Atlantean.

Beast Boy shifted back into his normal green form, and looked down sheepishly. "Sorry, I'm just glad I'm not the newest anymore."

Tempest clapped Beast Boy on the back, and turned back to his small group. "I think introductions are in order then. Everyone, you just met Beast Boy, our hyperactive shapeshifter." He gestured to Raven and Cyborg as they moved closer. "And these are two more of our members, Raven and Cyborg. Neither of them are as scary as they look."

Cyborg snorted in laughter, but Raven rolled her eyes.

"Thanks Garth." she deadpanned.

"You're welcome." Tempest said with complete sincerity, before he turned back to the three newer heroes. "Do you guys want to introduce yourselves, or do I have to do all the talking?"

One of the girls stepped forward confidently. She was dressed in fairly casual clothes, but her defining articles of clothing was the yellow T on her shirt and the heavy duty goggles on her head.

"I guess I'll go first. I'm Terra. I control earth." He confident smile quickly turned into a completely genuine one. "And I'd just like to say, this is the coolest thing to ever happen to me. Other heroes my age? I didn't think they existed, besides... like... sidekicks."

"Same here." Said the other girl. She wore a green cloak that hid most of her figure, but bright orange hair fell down around her shoulders. "I thought I was one of the only solo teen heroes out there. I'd never even imagined I'd ever meet another one." She looked directly at Raven. "Much less another telepath."

Only the people who had known her the longest could have seen it, but the corners of Raven's mouth twitched upwards.

"And you are?" the magic user asked.

"Lilith Clay." The girl stated. "But I've been going by the name Omen." Raven nodded her approval and the group's attention turned to the next new member.

"Uh, Hi. " The boy next to Lilith rubbed the back of his head nervously. "I'm Jaime. And I've got this scarab thing attached to my back that gives me powers and talks in my head."

Cyborg immediately looked interested. "Wait, so It's like you're conscience?"

"Not unless my conscious is angry and semi-murderous half the time."

Cyborg opened his mouth to respond, but stopped when two girls flew into the room. One flew with the mechanical wings attached to her suit, but the other seemed to be able to fly on her own, with only a light green energy trailing behind her.

"Yo! Have you guys seen the guy flying around the tower?" Karen asked, as she folded her insect-like wings closer to her back. "What are ya'll standing here for?"

Raven uncrossed her arms and looked to the beautiful orange skinned girl next to Bumblebee. "We thought we'd wait for Starfire. She's usually got the best judgement about these things."

Koriand'r smiled at her friend, and floated to the window.

"Thank you, Raven." The beautiful alien princess said, observing the figure that had finally stopped flying around their tower. "I do not think whoever that is is hostile." she said after a few moments. "Whoever they are, if they intended to attack us, they would have already. Instead, they seemed to have only stumbled upon us."

"More like your situation, Star?" Cyborg asked. "Lost alien on earth kind of thing?"

"There is only one way to discover that, Cyborg." Starfire said, "I will go ask him."

"I'll go with you." Raven said, not liking the idea of her friend going out there alone.

The Princess nodded, but before the two powerhouses flew out to meet whoever was outside their tower, Starfire turned to Garth.

"Call him, Tempest." She ordered. "This could be important."

* * *

Richard Grayson was going to break his one rule, and kill whatever was making that annoying noise.

Blearily opening his eyes, and peeking at the alarm clock on his bedside table, he groaned. He had been running on fumes this entire week, hardly sleeping, eating, or doing anything but work. This had been his best chance to get some solid rest for more than two hours, and now that noise had ruined it.

Muttering, Dick rolled out of bed and reached for the communicator making the heinous buzzing sound. He fumbled around for the right one, as there were multiple communicators on the table beside his bed.

He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes as he opened the voice channel. "Hey Tempest, how can I help you?"

"We need you here." The Atlantean said, cutting directly to the point.

Dick was glad Garth couldn't see his eye roll. "I left Kory in charge for a reason. She's just as capable of leading the team. I'll be back when I'm finished with my business here."

"Yeah, we know. But you said to call in an emergency."

"Is this an emergency?" Richard asked, pushing any fatigue out of his mind. "Status report." he ordered.

"There's a guy flying around the tower, Starfire and Raven flew out to meet him. Somehow, he got past the force field, but Star doesn't think he's hostile, just very very lost."

Dick sat back down on his bed, running his hands through his hair. "So why call me? Sounds like Kory has it all under control."

"The guy is wearing Superman's symbol." Tempest said, "However, we know they aren't Superman, because-"

"He's wearing a black tee-shirt, and looks way to young, right?" Dick interrupted, jumping up and racing out of his room.

"Yeah... How did you know?" Garth asked.

"Garth, it's imperative that you do not engage him." Dick said, rushing past Alfred in the hallway, and down into the lower levels of the manor. "He shouldn't be hostile, but don't make him angry. Try and keep Gar away from him for as long as possible."

"Wait, hold up. Do you know-"

Slipping into his suit, Richard cut off Tempest's question. "I'll be there in ten minutes. Nightwing out."

* * *

 **Reviews are appreciated!**


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